Stuck in the KHR! World
by Murasaki Argenteria
Summary: There's a reason why you don't trust that nice looking only lady that asks for just a moment of your time. Too bad she had been too nice to ignore her... ah well, could've ended up worse, right? She could have ended up in a world she knew absolutely nothing about! ...Or she could be dead... or Dreaming... Yeah... Dreaming sounds good... "...OW!" Ok, maybe not then... INCOMPLETE
1. IMPORTANT! Edit? What Edit?

**IMPORTANT! PLEASE READ BEFORE YOU MOVE ON!**

Before Anyone Reads Anything, I would like to note that you should check out my Profile. But Since I'm sure none of you (or very few of you) are actually going to do that, I'm going to say everything here as well... Summarized/Said Differently.

Ok, so, I know I said I was going to revise everything but I've been on hiatus for so long and people have actually asked for me to put everything up as it has been before. So to those that asked for that YES, That is exactly what I am going to do.

However, because some of the revisions were a bit...radical...to say the least, I have decided to post EVERYTHING (at least for the ones that I have the originals for) exactly as they were before I started taking things down and revising. For some of the things, stories might make more sense or Omake's and things (Like Stuck's Theatre thing...which I will be taking down).

On the other hand, because I will be doing this, I will NOT be posting the revisions on this account. I will do it on another account once I can get back into the swing of things. I am only doing this right now because I happen to have a bit of time to do so, and I have no assignments that absolutely need to be done _right now_. Please remember I am a college student/freshman that is trying to adjust to college life, so things may take a little while. However, I WILL NOT abandon the stories I have on this account. The revisions will simply be posted on another account which I will inform everyone of once I find/remember/create one. So please be patient for a while more, and thank you.

That's really all I wanted to tell you guys, so enjoy the old stuff! (And yes, that means these won't be finished... at least, not on this account! I will, however, post a notice when I figure out my other account, so don't worry! You will be getting everything and more when I finally get to posting things again... OTL)

Anyways, that should be everything (Wow, this is longer than what I posted on my profile...weird), so hopefully you can all still enjoy my old juvenile writing!

- Murasaki Argenteria (04.25.2013)


	2. Never Trust A Witch Giving Surveys

**Stuck in the KHR! World**

A Katekyo Hitman Reborn! Fanfiction

_by_ Murasaki Argenteria

* * *

1. **Never Trust a Witch Giving Surveys...**

_Another day, another pile of goddamn _stress_ to deal with..._

An eighteen year old girl sighed, shouldering the messenger bag she'd been using since her backpack (which she'd been using for nearly eight years already) had died. The poor –but sturdy- thing, it had always shifted the weight to make it all more manageable, not to mention comfortable. The strap had also _never_ dug into her shoulders…

Her High School Guidance Councilor had been right; getting a double-major was hard work! But, she _refused_ to be daunted. True, she sometimes wanted to scream, and yell, and… well, just have a _Xanxus_ tantrum (though she knew that it would be for the best in the long run)…

Unfortunately, though, not even a full _year_ into college and she was already feeling the strain. Surprisingly, though, she had turned eighteen _in_ College unlike most, and had, somehow (note the _'somehow'_), managed to graduate from High School with the rest of her class…

There had, after all, been a rather close call with her Science Credits (she quite literally _failed_ at any and practically all things scientific, unlike her absolute favorite science character –well, _only_ one, if she didn't cloud Shouichi and Spanner, though they're more mechanics than scientists, so they really don't count in that department- in Katekyo Hitman Reborn!, Verde). But, she had managed somehow pass that subject anyways.

So here she was, walking, in the direction of her College's Dorms, down the busy city streets. Her roommate, though –and quite surprisingly- had ended up being someone she had known from the net. Shocking, wasn't it?

Fou, though, as she liked to be called, was just _one_ of two of her closest friends. The redheaded female could only measure up to second place next to her _best_ friend –who was almost like a sister to her. (She barely kept in touch with her other friends, though, seeing as they had just… well, they had all just ended up 'drifting apart' somehow…)

'Heann' was the nickname of her best-friend-slash-almost-sister, but she –along with Fou- was just as odd as the person currently making her way 'home'.

Unfortunately, though, for said girl, the day had not been going too well. She had forgotten to turn in _two_ of her major assignments, and she just _knew_ she was going to have to go through _hell_ to try to make the work –and the grades- up. Still, that was just what she got for being so lazy, she thought with a sigh, what with watching anime and reading manga (or fanfiction) all night, and being such a procrastina- no, a _perfectionist_, she amended before she realized that she had been trying to justify her actions… to _herself_…

She sighed.

Life just _really _sucked right now...

Oh, how she _wished_ she could be a character in one of her favorite series! Like, say, KHR! -but alas, that was but a pipe dream. _No_ one could go into the world they wanted -it was just plain _impossible_, after all…

Well, unless they were in a _dream_ -or a _fanfiction_- or something...

* * *

A rather nondescript and supposedly old woman stood on the side of the street with the pretense of handing out surveys, when, _really_, she was actually searching for a good vi-err… _target_. Someone that had a pure enough soul, that they could be eligible to be chosen as one of the very few that could get their wish granted by her -and with no cost to the wish-maker, no less.

Most ignored the woman, though –or just outright refused. But, as she continued to hand the papers out, she caught a glimpse of _one_ eligible soul…

And it was a girl; the child looked as if she had just come out of the 'awkward adolescent' stage, and had short onyx hair that framed her thoughtful, yet apathetic, looking face, and barely hid the bit of baby fat that just refused to leave the youth's body. She also had dark, chocolate brown irises that seemed almost to _melt_ into her pupils, the color was so far. A flash of light that shone directly into her face changed that perception, though, as it caused her irises to turn an almost tannish-gold color, as her pupils contracted because of the second-long flash of light.

The young woman (for she surely couldn't be considered a girl now that she was eighteen?) wasn't very pretty, though she couldn't be considered _ugly_, either. In fact, she looked almost like another average Joe –or, rather, _Jane_ (despite her obviously Asian background, which was odd in and of itself, as Asians typically stood out more)- with all the worldly troubles of _any_ College Freshman, and perhaps _more_…

She could see the stress hidden within the girl's almost dull, dark eyes quite clearly, and easily, as well as a wish –no, a _need_- for something that she was not yet even conscious of…

It was a wish that she could _grant_, the aging woman thought, a rather peculiar smile forming itself on her features. After all, she _was_ required to use her 'abilities' (powers, more like, really) to grant at least _one_ –or two, on the off occasion- lucky soul's wish every century or so, depending. _Her_ sort of 'power' didn't come without a _price_, after all…

"Excuse me, Miss, could I possibly take just a bit of your time…?" she started, making her voice waver not unlike that of the old woman she was masquerading she called out to the prospective soul, her smile widening mentally –there was _just_ the matter of that small _test_ to see if she was worthy, of course, but after that…?

After _that_, she would be able to go home and _relax_ for yet another century, using her powers as she wished, and for what reasons she wished.

Whether for good, or bad...

* * *

"_Excuse me, Miss, but could I possibly take just a _bit_ of your time...?_" asked a kindly looking old lady, her crinkled, and pale -almost sightless looking- blue-grey eyes filled with a wisdom she could only possibly _try_ to fathom.

"Eh? Oh, uhm, sure...?" she answered, blinking in confusion when she realized that the woman had been talking to _her_. She really didn't want to talk to anyone at the moment (which could partly attribute to the reason as to why she looked so much _plainer_ today –as it had been a partly unconscious choice on her part), but she really wasn't quite _rude_ –or brave- enough to just turn and walk away from someone after she had already answered, and when they had called out to _her _specifically.

"Why yes, dearie~ Would you mind filling out a little survey for me?" she asked, a small smile revealing teeth that were still white and pristine even after who knew _how_ many years…

"Oh, sure… I guess," she blinked, accepting the form from the kindly old woman. "Uhm… do you… have a pencil…?" she asked rather apologetically –and sheepishly. Her voice was quiet and, somehow, calm (serene, almost). "I'm… afraid I don't have anything to write with at the moment," she confessed once she had realized that she was completely out of writing utensils. (Her pen had actually _just_ died on her… of all the miserable luck.)

She had always been sort of shy around those she didn't know, even now –in fact, even around people she _did_know, she could still be quite shy.

The woman just seemed to smile a bit more at this, though, oddly enough. "Oh yes, of course –I have lots, dearie," she said, handing her a pencil from who knows where (_she _certainly didn't see anything to hold much on the small stand to the side).

The girl returned the old woman's smile a bit hesitantly, and thanked her –_politely_- for the writing utensil, before turning back to the sheet.

It was all basic information, but…

**Name**:

**Age**:

**Gender**:

**Favorite Color**(**s**):

**Favorite Animal**(**s**):

**Greatest Wish**/**Desire**:

…_Why_ in all Hells was it asking for her _Greatest Wish/Desire_...? she really had to wonder, seeing as not only was it asking such a _strange_ question, but it also asked a few of the less important ones and skipped out on what a survey would normally ask (like an address or a phone number), not that she really minded.

Oh well, she thought, shrugging it off as some sort of weird quirk (heavens only knew that _she_ had enough of them as it was! Who could know how many a _normal_ person would have? So, really, who was _she_ to question such a 'minor' strangeness...?) or maybe even a blind survey. Either way, might as well answer it, she thought -it seemed harmless enough after all…

Well, unless it was all some sort of military or government ploy to collect information against the questionees with… Although, she honestly doubted that that would be the case, conspiracy theories aside. She wasn't 'outstanding' in any way… well, aside from the whole 'Otaku-ist' thing, hmn… maybe there _was_ something…

Eh, either way, she found highly unlikely that it would be the case. There were stranger people then _her_ out there after all -and besides, she was _quite_ good at acting the social recluse, _thank you very much_.

"Uhm..." she started, catching the attention of the woman as she came out of her thoughts, "For name… Do I have to use my real name...?" she asked quietly, a little embarrassed to have to ask this –but, as polite as she tried to be, she just couldn't quite trust someone she had just randomly met on the _streets _after all. Especially since they were in a rather crowded city, as well.

_That_ and no one would typically ever really reach out to her unless they wanted something -well, with the exception of her best friends, of course... She was actually _right_ not to trust a random person on the streets, though, but it still seemed to be a bit rude to her -and she preferred not to be rude if she couldn't help it -it always made her feel guilty. Even _if_ the person deserved it... And this _nice_ little old lady _definitely_ didn't! Well...

Or so she _thought_...

The old woman just smiled reassuringly, "Not at all, _dearie_~ Nicknames are fine," she said patiently.

She nodded, feeling a bit relieved, "Okay..." she said, smiling back a little before proceeding to fill the short form out.

For her Name, she just wrote down one of her most common aliases -or, rather, the username she used for practically everything, and had eventually become a nickname to those that knew her.

For age, she wrote eighteen, and as for gender: female, of course.

Her favorite color... Ah, that was hard...

So she put 'most', but listed the colors she liked best: Blue, Black, Purple, Silver, and Grey... oh, and Red, dark red. She was rather partial to Blood-Red for some reason...

For animals, she immediately wrote Cats -Snow Leopards and Cougars to be more specific, though she did like Wolves as well, so she put that down, and most birds. Hmn... She did like certain house cats as well -_and Black Cats_. she added, since she did like those, though she couldn't remember the name of a kind of Wild Cat that was a greyish-black color and had almost silvery grey eyes, so she left it at that. (She would have added dragons, but she was pretty sure that the 'animals' did _not_ mean mystical_ or _mythical animals...)

But as for her Greatest Wish/Desire...

That would have been to live in the world of her choosing, of course! Well, she might have put 'to become God' but that would have just been too much work (being God, that was, not writing it down -she wasn't _that_ lazy), and besides, she didn't want to come off as some pompous _arse_.

But, just to make things clear, she added that it would be _awesome_ if she could become a character in the Katekyo Hitman Reborn! world, and, if not, then a nice, peaceful life as a successful Author, Editor, or maybe a Psychiatrist would be cool too (_preferably_ a job that she could enjoy and relax after), and a_ career_, not just another 'job' or just work that she would have to wake up early for, while cursing the alarm for _whatever_ inane reason she would be stuck cursing at said clock for...

* * *

She finished filling the half sheet out, before handing it back, planning to head back (to the Dorms), but the woman asked her to "Please wait just a moment, now," as she seemed to skim over the front, and _then_ turned to the back, asking if she minded filling out the _back_, too...

Well, no _wonder_ the Survey was only half a page! she thought, startled as she accepted the sheet back and turned to the other side of the page -it was _double-sided!_(Not that that was a bad thing, since it was saving trees and all.)

Turning it over, though, she read though the questions on the back with more than just a little confusion.

_"If you were to be granted the wish of your choosing, what kind of person would you be? (Please fill out the profile below accordingly)"_ she read, before scanning the sheet and seeing that it was asking for basic information again -of _course_. Even though the question was (more than) a little odd, she shrugged it off and filled it out -why not? It wasn't like the surveyors could track her down and yell at her for lame or unnatural answers (it was _their_ fault for wording it so strangely, after all!).

The finished product looked something like this…

**Name**: Murasaki Argenteria

**Alias**: Kyouya Mikami Rei

**Gender**: Female

**Age**: 15-17 (well, if she could be any age, why not? It'd be fun to have a second chance.)

**Appearance**: A somewhat pretty and slender girl with long onyx hair, and deep grey eyes. (What? Who would willingly wish to be ugly? And if wishes could come true, then why not wish to look somewhat good-looking, at least? Not that it really mattered, of course…)

**Special Abilities**:  
Fighting Ability: Acceptable/Passable -good enough to defend/protect against people who would try to attack/assault. And, if at all_ possible_, should be able to hold out until there's a chance to run if it's Hibari Kyouya. (What? She didn't want to die/be killed the first time they met for some stupid reason! She rather _liked_ living, thank-you-very-much!)

Sky Flames: Cloud, Sun, Mist, and Rain Flames

Other Abilities: Is also good with disguises... _usually_, and can also (usually) imitate things pretty well, so long as it's well within capabilities.

**Anything Else To Be Known?**:  
Special Items:

Box Weapons:  
il Cangiante-Forma Arma: "The Shape-Changing Weapon" A box weapon that can change form depending on the user's will. It is most compatible with Mist and/or Cloud flames (due to the abilities, of course). There should be several of these of different levels/ranks -S, A, and B. And, depending on the flame, can be used for different purposes.  
Laptop: A laptop that has been modified to be contained in a special Box Weapon, that can connect to this world (original world) -but only with the right flames and the right password (which can be changed). The laptop is an old _Averatec_ Model that is soft silver, and can be charged using Certain Flames -no Storm or Rain flames, though, as those will either slow it down or destroy the circuits.  
Battery Box: Adds power to certain box weapons. There should always be a few of these on hand as well.

Flame Rings:  
1 'A' Class Ring for each flame -Sun, Rain, Mist, and Cloud  
2 'A' Class multi-flame (sun, rain, cloud, and mist) rings (one with a jewel set for each flame= [X][X][X][X] and one with a single jewel for each flame= [ ])  
1 'S' Class multi-flame (sun, rain, cloud, and mist) ring

Animal Box Weapons:  
il Lupo Nero (di Nebbia e Nuvole): "The Black (Mist and Cloud) Wolf" Kanade/Nero (depending on the form) is an Animal Box-Weapon. As the name implies, it is a pure-black wolf with violet-red eyes, and the Flame attributes of Mist and Cloud. It may sometimes be seen as a _female_ silver wolf with an almost siamese-cat/husky like look at times, though with a strange silverish-grey/white tint to match Silvestris (il Argento Gatta), causing many of the less-perceptive people to believe that there are two (sometimes more) of him, when in fact, there is but _one_.  
la Leonessa di Montagna (del Sole): "The Sun Cougar" Kokoro is also an Animal Box-Weapon. As the name implies, it is a mountain lioness -or cougar. It looks very much like a typical mountain lion with Sun Flames  
la Pantera Nevi d'Argento (della Pioggia): "The Silver (Rain) Panther" Silvestris is yet another Animal Box Weapon. This one is a Rain Flame Attribute Box Weapon that seems to enjoy fighting. It has almost 'wolf-ish' looks at times, though with her typical silverish-grey/white tint*. (Is usually actually just Kanade/Nero)  
il Corvo Indaco (della Nebbia e Nuvole): "The (Mist and Cloud) Raven" Kurou, a Raven with Mist & Cloud properties. It's mostly an intel gatherer, but that doesn't mean it can't fight. It is rather ferocious when riled, and can be mistaken for a crow at times -not to mention the name is 'kurou' and sounds much like 'crow'.  
le Farfalle (della Multi Fiamma): The "Farfalla" is/are the only box weapon that can use all of the flames, or just a few -it uses Cloud flames the most in order to multiply, though it can also emit Sun, Rain, and Mist flames when used properly.

Other:  
Likes: Music, and tends to keep some sort of MP3 player on hand, with all types of music (so long as it's _good_ music), and likes to sing, if not always perfectly. Also likes Art, but fails at it mostly and can't draw real life -or anything- except simple anime/manga-style heads or clothes designs (is horrible at drawing most designs unless a lot of effort is put into it). Likes to read and write as well, and is aspiring to be an author, editor and/or psychiatrist.

* * *

By the time she finished _that_ side, some time had passed, she realized, as she handed it back to the woman who had smile oddly.

_Oh, yes, this will be interesting_, the woman thought, taking the sheet.

"_Thank _you, dearie -and, since you're the first to answer the _entire_ thing, please, let me give you _this _as a gift," she said, brandishing a brand new messenger bag seemingly out of nowhere -it was 'cute', though (the bag).

She had, in all actuality, just used the first side of the list (as _well_ as a personality spell) to make it with her magic -a little _token_, if you will to help the girl _safe-keep_ her things in (her own bag looked to be in _terrible _condition, anyways, seeing as it was barely able to handle the weight of whatever it was that was currently in there).

The bag she held was a black messenger-bag just like the one the girl was already using, with a removable but sturdy black and silver strap (which could be re-adjusted to become 2 'backpack'-like straps if needed so that she wouldn't ruin her shoulders), with a few silver chains on it, and had little silver cat and wolf charms on it. On the front flap, was a design of a large music note and crescent on one side with a few smaller music notes and stars scattered on the cover in blue, purple, and grey fading from grey to blue to purple horizontally -in deep colors (though the stars were silver). And not only that, it had a lot of pockets on the inside as well-some large and others small/smaller (not that she could see the inside yet).

It also had a few silver chains inside and outside of it, with what looked like removable pins stuck in it as well. Not to mention that there were some dark, crimson red splashed across the cover on it -almost like _blood_-splatter.

It took her breath away -but... she couldn't _possibly_ take it! It must have cost a fortune! (metaphorically speaking, of course)

"I-I can't," she said regretfully as the woman urged her to take it (she honestly didn't like -well, _hated_, really- to _owe_ people).

"Please, _do_. Think of it as my way of saying thanks... as well as a little pity, since even _these_ old eyes can see how worn out and _used_ looking your own is," she said, looking pointedly towards the girl's own old and abused-looking black bag with the fading words and a few pictures on it, it had faded so much that the once pristinely colored threads now looked greyish -and splotchy (no thanks to caffeine stains –she honestly was _not_ a morning person, and she had never really managed to get the stains out, sadly).

She hesitated, "But..." she started, starting to falter -it was so_ perfect_...! Yet still, she couldn't just _take _such a thing.

"I was originally going to going to give it to my granddaughter, you know," the woman rambled, blatantly lying (not that _she_ knew that), "But apparently, her tastes have changed -she likes_ pastel _colored things now," she sighed.

"And I can't return this either -such a _shame_... Please, take it?" she offered again. "If only to keep such a beautiful thing from just gathering dust in the back of my attic?"

This time, she only hesitated for half a second, before accepting it, almost -well, maybe just _slightly_- hesitantly.

"Oh... Well, in that case..." she said, eyes shining with gratitude, as the witch's eyes twinkled. She would never want such a beautiful thing (in her mind) to just sit in some dark storage place collecting dust. "Thank you," she said rather quietly -almost subdued.

"If you keep the things you like in there, I can almost guarantee they will stay safe," she hinted mysteriously -her seemingly dull blue eyes suddenly seeming _much_ deeper and clear. "I wish you luck, my dear...

"In _everything_," she said, and before the girl could reply (or even _react)_ to the odd statement, a loud honk startled her, making her turn to see two cars –and their arguing drivers- at the suddenly flickering stoplight.

When she turned around again though, the woman -and the stand- had mysteriously disappeared into thin air...

Confused, and feeling _very_ much like she had (probably) just done something she really shouldn't have (ie, signing her soul to the devil, or something like that), the girl continued on 'home', holding onto the precious gift she had received -the only proof that _none_ of what had happened a few moments earlier had been a dream_..._

_Or_ an illusion...

* * *

Not too far away, and high above the street, a certain sapphire-eyed woman's lips quirked into a smile, her youthful appearance doing _nothing_ to hide the wisdom and age hidden within her dark eyes. The once white hair was now long and straight, and an obsidian color that almost bordered on midnight _blue_ it was so dark.

"Worry not, child -you will understand soon enough," she spoke, her ruby-red lips twisting into a rather_ mischievous _smirk, as she tilted the edge of her gossamer-black 'witch's' hat, causing her face to become shadowed in a way that hid her gem-like eyes from view.

"Yes... _very_ soon," she murmured quietly, before murmuring a few incomprehensible words and...

_Vanishing_. Without a single trace of her existence.

* * *

"I'm back," the onyx-haired girl sighed as she closed the door behind her, flopping carelessly down onto her bed, her face buried into the clean sheets, once she'd dropped her things onto the floor beside to the bed.

No one answered her, making her look up -and over to her Roommate's side of the Dorm.

Not home yet... _figure_s, she thought almost tiredly. Unlike _her_, 'Fou' (her dorm-mate) actually seemed to have a _life_ other than that of the internet -or _studying_.

She turned over to lay on her back, arms crossed over her midsection, staring at the crisp white walls of the dorm for a while, before she sat up.

Might as well take a closer look at that bag that the strange woman had given her…

And, taking another look, it was just as 'beautiful' as she had thought it had been at first.

Opening it, she found pockets for practically _everything_ -keys, cell phone, and two or three larger sections for books and the like that she could use.

Almost immediately, she decided to rearrange her things -the woman had been right, after all, the bag she was using was _so_ worn down -and would probably have broken before the end of the semester, anyways.

She found a few hidden pockets while she put all of her things into the bag -then, recalling the woman's odd words, decided, _why not?_ And added a few other things in as well. Not that her new bag probably wasn't heavy _enough_ with all the stuff she'd already put in, but, somehow -when she lifted it- it didn't seem heavy at _all_!

In fact, it seemed to be _just_ the right weight -even with her _textbooks_ (the heavy and_ bulky_ ones that she used pretty much every day), her sketchbook, _several_ notebooks, her laptop, the charger for _that_, her cell phone, a few folders of work, her wallet, keys, and MP3 player (though the last one really wasn't required, seeing as her phone had an MP3 & MP4 system in it, too. Actually, it was a typical BlackBerry).

Not to mention she had two pencil cases in it -one that she usually used in the pocket that seemed made for it, while the other was place strategically in the same large 'pocket' as the textbooks on the side without the bottle holder, fitting just right, for all it was filled with spare erasers, pencil lead, white-out... and a few pens, as well.

After _that_, she thought a bit about what _else_ she could possibly put in it, as she was still carrying it, and it didn't seem_ too_ heavy (and it really_ did _seem quite sturdy) -not to mention that there were two side pockets, a bottle-holder, and at least _one_ large pocket that was still completely empty.

So she thought for a moment, before remembering something, and pulling out the Kunai she had bought almost two years prior from Otakon into the two side pockets -one never knew with the kind of strangers in the city -a girl needed _some_ kind of weapon, after all!

Sure, she had taken a _few_ Self-Defense classes -but she had only taken enough to hold off one person, and only enough to make a run for it, and_ obviously_ there were stronger (and faster) people out in the world...

A _lot_ of stronger people.

Chewing her lip lightly in though, she tried to think of something -_any_thing- else. She had put most of her stuff in it already, she realized, before thinking of something else_. Cat ears-!_ she thought randomly.

She could put those in the pocket with the smaller Kunai -it was a double pocket anyways, which meant the Kunai would be separated from the cat ears.

Next, she dug out her 'Death Note' -not the one from Otakon, no. It was the one that she had found online and bought (without the knowledge of her parents, of course), and was a simple _copy _(_not_ like the 'original' copy she had bought that had seemed to be written in by Light himself -though she knew that was just fake advertising – still, it was nice).

Other than that, she really couldn't think of anything else, seeing as she had already incorporated a few (okay, _most_) of her portable games and game systems -unless she wanted to put spare clothes, but she wasn't _that_ eccentric... (_yet_) to be carrying out a set of clothes -besides, people might wonder...

Even _if _she was single, and had yet to show interest in the 'living' (most of her crushes seemed to be anime/manga characters -and half of them were complete, and utter _weirdo's_. Ie., Hisoka from Hunter X Hunter; A whole bunch of characters from Katekyo Hitman Reborn!, of course (except Levi and Torikabuto -those were the _only_ people she really hated in the show -no wait, make that just Levi, she just plain hated him -she didn't even hate _Haru_, and the girl annoyed her -most of the time...- a _LOT_); L and Ryuk -yes _Ryuk_ (the _shinigami_)- from Death Note... and –oh yeah- Light_ too_, but _he_ came after L and Ryuk who were her two favorites; and... a _whole _bunch of others.

One _seriously_ did not want to go into how twisted/insane she probably -or maybe- was to like about _half _of the people already listed...

Not to mention she also had a crush on a _mind-devouring _demon character from a Manga called 'Nougami Tantei Neuro', and had actually glomped the first (and only) Neuro she had seen at her first Otakon two years back -when she had been sixteen- without warning, _much_ to the horror of her two friends, who were cosplaying Roxas from Kingdom Hearts and... Crepsley (yes, _Crepsley_) from Darren Shan...

Fangirls are scary things indeed -but she was _not_ a 'Mary Sue' (she hated them with a passion), and she considered herself an Otaku_ -not_ a Fangirl (which, in reality, probably _did_ describe her better).

She was obsessed with most Japanese -okay, _all_ Japanese- things. Katekyo Hitman Reborn! _especially_.

She liked too many characters to count (and had actually written waaay too many KHR! fanfiction to date -and actual _fanfiction_ not one-shots), most of which weren't even _halfway through_ yet. Everything else was usually just -maybe- one or two fanfiction at most (if two, one of them being a crossfiction of some type).

The scariest thing, though, was when she had started coming up with idea after idea for the series -and even went so far as to make a 'back-up' plethora of cross-fiction ideas which she _still_ had yet to write up, let alone type and post on Fanfiction!

Two of which she had already put up, actually (both being Digimon and Katekyo Hitman Reborn! fictions). The next one she came up with had been a Shugo Chara and Katekyo Hitman Reborn! fanfiction much to one of her friends' horror –and had _still _been cranking out more ideas as she went (such as Bleach x KHR!, Harry Potter x KHR!, and even _Phineas and Ferb_ x KHR! ! And _that_ one she had gotten while skipping through channels on the tele in utter boredom).

True, it wasn't all that scary -well, to _her_ at least. But then, her mind _did _work rather oddly.

She _already_ had odd eating habits -not to mention she preferred her meat almost_ raw_ rather that just medium-rare (she would barely put it down on the stove for half a minute on all sides, before taking it off the stove and eating the blood meat of whatever poor animal it had come from)...

Luckily, it was a habit that –eventually- had been broken by her parents and friends -otherwise she would be likely be either in an _asylum_ or a hospital. For various reasons.

But then, this story wouldn't be happening, would it?

No, no it would not.

She liked odd pairings, though, and was into almost any sort of pairing –shounen-ai/yaoi, shoujo-ai/yuri, _and_ het.

But then, it is said that all humans are born with bisexual tendencies (and her mentality is more open, and neutral to begin with -you did _not_ want to try seeing what was really in her head, _really_).

She could be quite scary at times, but luckily -she had yet to ever really get 'hyper'. (Although, the fact that she gets 'hyper' but not enough to not hold herself back from doing things is probably a bit scary in and of itself-!) The closest she had come to that, though, had been Otakon -but even then, she had managed to preserve a tiny niggle of sanity -it also helped that the real world came crashing back down the second she got home, though...

But, we're getting off topic now. You can be _assured_ that there will be no more 'breaking of the walls' -or tangents from the author _during_ the story at this point.

In any case, back to the story...!

* * *

By the time she had finished organizing everything she could think of into the bag (which, miraculously, did not look _anything_ like the completely _stuffed_ bag that it was despite the fact that it was stuffed with more than a normal bag its size could possibly hold without bursting open), her roommate had returned.

"Ah, Fou-chan~ You're back!" she said, smiling at her red-headed friend (when she had first learned that her roommate was the same Fou from Gaia online, she had opened up to her quite a bit faster than she would have a _normal_ person -dorm-mate or no).

The near-crimson-red haired girl grinned, "Yo~" she greeted, making a peace sign before noticing the new bag, "Oh, hey, cool~! You got a new bag?" she asked, eyes lighting up as she grabbed said bag, studying the design diligently, "Wow," she said at last, eyebrows rising somewhat in surprise at the 'quality' of the above-said item, "Never seen one like this... Where'd you get it?" she asked curiously.

"I got it from a very nice lady," she told her friend truthfully -but, other than that, she doubted she could tell the complete truth and still be taken seriously.

"Aw, lucky!" Fou pouted, puffing a cheek up -kind of like _Bluebell_ from the Real Millefiore Funeral Wreaths, she thought mentally.

"So, what's up?" she asked Fou, seeing as she normally didn't get back so late.

Fou grinned, "Oh, well, stuff -you know," she shrugged, meaning normal stuff, things that they usually found utterly _boring_ to talk about...

Well, it was either that, or_ school work_.

She nodded, "So, what are you going to do now?" she asked, as she accepted the bag back from her friend and dorm-mate.

Fou shrugged, "What time is it?" she asked, looking around for a clock, though she could only find a white and pink Hello Kitty Clock (most definitely _not_ Fou's) shining red with the time...

About_ two hours and ten minutes _faster than the _real_ time.

"Uhm..." she turned to the above-mentioned digital radio-clock, before gasping, "_Holy Crap!_" she exclaimed, her mind automatically subtracting the extra time from the _real_ time on the clock.

"It's eight _already_?" she exclaimed, practically wailing as she got off the bed, "I'm sorry, Fou -but I have a seminar to attend early tomorrow!" she groaned, "If I don't go to sleep_ now_ I'll _never_ wake up!" she scrambling to get a change of clothes and a towel, wailing as she did, as she put the bags to the side of the bed (since she was done 'packing' anyways) and ran into the shared bathroom, before shutting the door (Fou could hear the sound of the shower being turned on -and a loud yelp as she was probably sprayed by the cold water. The shower_ always_ started cold).

The red-head just shrugged at this, and chuckled, before grinning somewhat, "Meh, I'm sure she'll be _fine_," she mumbled, before going over to her side of the room and pulling out a manga she had recently borrowed from the Public Library, and started to flip through it...

* * *

Almost fifteen minutes later, the shower turned itself off with a squeak -and after another five minutes or so, the onyx haired girl came out of the shower, the clothes she had been wearing earlier in her arms, in her pajamas, and a towel draped over her neck, flushed a rosy pink from the hot water she had used for her shower.

"I'm done," she sighed, tossing the dirty clothes into the hamper on her side of the room before falling carelessly onto the bed with a sigh.

"Cool," said Fou absently as she got up, saving her place in the book as she did, and slipped her feet into the fuzzy slippers next to her bed -her own things beside her, "I guess I'll hit the shower now too, then -I've got to work tomorrow before class," she told the other girl, who waved instead of nodding from her place on the other bed (it was doubtful if the other would have noticed if she had nodded her head, since it was buried in the soft, warm bed-sheets, so she didn't bother with it).

"_Mn'gh_ (Okay)," she murmured, already starting to feel sleepy, even as she lifted her head to look at -and talk to- her friend, though she shivered slightly at the coolness of the night air, "I'm gonna hit the sack now..." she murmured, "G'night, Fou~"

"Night~~" Fou called back, just as she shut the door behind her.

She crawled under bed-covers tiredly, and fell asleep with a small, blissful sigh almost as soon as her head hit the pillow, her curled-up body cocooned deep within the purple and grey sheets...

* * *

Within the next twenty minutes, she was completely out, and didn't notice the dim glow coming from the bag by her bed, and nor did Fou (as she was still in the shower), or she would've seen the soft glow of her roommate's body -even from under the cover.

But she wasn't there, and she didn't -she didn't notice when she came back out, either, shutting the last light that was on in the entire dorm, the _only_ light other than the ones coming off the digital clocks in the room.

A shadowy lump of sheets was all that was left on the other's bed, which she took to _be_ the other girl, as she did tend to completely cocoon herself in the blankets at times, completely, and from head to toe until nothing showed outside of the covers (_especially_ after a shower when the weather was pleasantly cool outside. Such as tonight)...

Which she actually had done.

The red-head also didn't notice the bag that was missing, beside the bed her dorm-mate -nor the lonely, and abandoned, looking one that lay at the foot of said female's bed...

* * *

**A/N**: Yay~ One of the longest yet~ (XD) *cheers*

Thanks to **Jestie Kiryuu** for letting me borrow her 'witch' (XD) I just couldn't help this one~

If Kyouya got sucked into the world a year later rather than earlier, how would she cope? And by herself? (XP)

Lol, I really am a sadist~~ Even to myself~ (XD) Lol~

Haha! 4,833 Words btw {**Edit**: Now 6,744 Words} Not including the A/N of course~

Bye-bi's~ See ya next chapter! :hearts: *waves*

**Rei**: Don't forget the disclaimer *appears out of nowhere*

**Authoress**: Ahk-! *jumps* Rei~~ *pout* don't startle me like that! But... yeah... I guess... *pouts, thinking: _drat! She caught on..._ shifty eyes*

**Rei**: *rolls eyes* Just get on with it please...

**Authoress**: Oh fine, spoilsport -but since I don't feel like saying it... (XP) I'll have someone else do it! Say hello to my little friend...

Spanner~! *grins*

**Spanner**: Yo! *waves, Strawberry Wrench-shaped Lollipop in mouth*

**Authoress**: (XD) *squeals* Ne, Spanner~ Do the Disclaimer for me, ne? *points to sign*

Just read that please~~

**Spanner**: Sure... *looks over at sign* ..."Akira-_sensei_ owns Katekyo Hitman Reborn!, not Murasaki-_san_. So please don't sue -because she doesn't own it...

"And she has no money."

That ok? *pulls out another lollipop*

**Authoress**: Perfect! Ooh~~ Sugar!(8D)

**Spanner**: *looks at Murasaki then lollipop, and offers it* Want one...?

**Authoress**: YES PLEASE! *grabs and stuffs in mouth*

**Spanner**: *shrugs and pulls another one out, carefully disposing of the previous stick before popping the other into mouth*

**Rei**: ...I'm leaving before this gets out of hand... *disappears*

**Spanner**: ...? *curious, but says nothing*

**Authoress**: Wheeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee~~! SUGAR~! *runs around on sugar high*

**Spanner**: *studies phenomenon with curiosity/interest* Hmn... So that's what she meant... *speaks just in time to get GLOMPed by authoress*

**Authoress**: _Matta ne~~!_ *waves ecstatically at readers*


	3. Varia's Virtuous Mama & Mammon's Master

**Stuck in the KHR! World**

_A_ Katekyo Hitman Reborn! _Fanfiction_

_by_ **Murasaki Argenteria**

* * *

2. **The Varia's "Viruous Mama" & Mammon's Master**

* * *

"...sssssh..."

"Ngh..." Deep within the forest, an onyx haired girl awakened, yawning, as she began to sit up from the place she had been sleeping in (or, rather, _under_).

"Fsssh..." the sound came closer.

"What 'z it...?" she mumbled, thinking that she had been awakened by her dorm-mate.

"Fsssh..." the sound became louder, and she opened her eyes to look around. There was still no visible source ye-

She paused. That wasn't the shower... and it -most _definitely_- wasn't her friend!

"F-Fou...?" she blinked, her sight sharpening as she started looking around more clearly -and gasped.

This wasn't her dorm-!

Something moved beside her, and she turned. It was her bag.

_Something_ was vibrating in the the bag that the kind old lady (or so she still believed at the moment) had given her.

She blinked, reaching -slowly- towards it. Maybe it was her phone...? or so she hoped, as her hand trembled in _just_ the slightest, _nervously_.

But before she could actually _check_, something came crashing into the area of the woods she was currently (sitting) in.

"VOOOOOOOOIIIII! WHAT THE HELL WAS THAT FOR, YOU FUCKER!" yelled a loud (yet _somehow_ familiar) voice, as a silver haired man crashed out of the bushes nearby, causing her to squeak and pull her bag closer, to herself, and her body.

"_Shut the Hell up!_" came the obviously irritated retort -the voice was rough and...

She blinked. No, wait...

"S-Superbi _Squalo_?" she gasped, causing the silver haired man to turn.

"Huh? VOIIII! WHO THE _HELL_ ARE YOU, BI-" he started, waving a _very_ lethal looking sword (where his artificial hand _should've_ been, actually) at her person before a random shot-glass smashed into his (apparently, _very_ hard) head.

"VOIIII! STUPID BOSS! STOP THROWING THAT DAMN GLASS AT ME!" he roared, waving his artificial-hand-slash-sword around in the direction that the shot-glass had been hurled from.

She could only wince at the volume.

"Ow... that... was loud..." she muttered, reaching a hand up to rub her poor ears -the other hand held her bag protectively close to her body, and before her like a useless meat-shield. (she very much doubted that her bag would be able to protect her from _Squalo_ if this was all real, unless her bag had super-power or this was all some weird _dream_... Not that she hadn't had any KHR-related dreams before...)

"_I SAID SHUT THE FUCK UP YOU STUPID PIECE OF SHITTY SHARK TRASH!_" roared Xanxus (It could _only_ be Xanxus with that attitude... well, as far as _she_ could tell anyways, and she rather doubted that it could be anyone else.) from farther off, as Squalo's glare (towards the area he'd come from) turned into a rather scary -but somehow befitting (not to mention _nasty_)- scowl.

Added to the glare...

Oh yeah, she was scared practically _shit-less_ (excuse the language).

"Ushishishi~ Sharkie got told off~" sang a somehow familiar voice that seemed only to be coming closer.

"Mou~~ Boss-san~! Please stop doing that! If you bully Squ-chan every time like that, we'll never make it back in time~!" exclaimed a rather effeminate sounding male from somewhere closer.

The chide was followed by a string of curses that was best not to be repeated.

End story: Why the _hell_ was he speaking a mixture of (fucking) _Japanese_ and Italian when they were in_Italy_ of all places...?

The hidden question was ignored, as the cussing continued.

"Muu... Bel, let go. You're suffocating me-! I'll charge you for this!" snapped a rather apathetic sounding child. Said child's voice wasn't very high, though,

"Ushishishi~ Stingy baby~ The Prince can do whatever he likes! Besides~ The Prince has looots of money~! Shishi~~"

The voices were coming closer, and she was finally realizing that Squalo and Xanxus were having a rather loud argument across the distance, when Lussuria appeared. "Oh my~ Dear, Squ-chan-"

"_DON'T _CALL ME 'SQU-CHAN',_ YOU FUCKIN' FAG!_" interrupted -or rather, _yelled_- said Shark halfway through a retort to Xanxus, though that, too, was ignored.

"-you weren't _terrorizing_ this poor girl, were you?" he continued, as if he had _not_ just been interrupted by a silver-haired shark with lungs of steel. "She looks scared to death!" he chided, starting towards the girl as he did -who,_ finally_, seemed to be starting to realize that she was_ not_ -in any way- dreaming... (Well, maybe in _one_, she _had_ always wanted to be in the KHR! Universe... But anyways!) If she _were_ dreaming, her eardrums wouldn't hurt so much if it were, and her back wouldn't feel so _stiff_.

Wait, bigger question, _why_ -and, yes, _how_- could she understand them? she wondered -she knew a few Italian words, yes, but...

She couldn't actually _speak_ the language! After another second or so, she blinked, realizing that Lussuria (for she could only assume it was him -who _else_ had a green mohawk... thingie... well, whatever it was called, was in the Varia, _and/or_ acted like... well, like _Luss_?) was still speaking to her.

"-Dear _me!_ Really, what are we going to do with you, Squ~? Now then, darling," he said, turning back to a rather startled girl, "Would you mind giving up -whoops! I mean, giving _us_- your name, at least?" he asked, and, fixing his 'slip' almost as soon as he made it in case she was just a lost civilian/tourist (they did, occasionally, still get those in the forest surrounding the Castle), leaned partly down to smile at her from behind the (prescription?) shades that he was never seen without.

She gulped, "Uhm... s-sure," she said, voice soft, and almost squeaking as she did.

Lussuria blinked, "Darling, why are you speaking English~?" he asked curiously, "We're in Italy, dear, speak Italian," he said with a smile.

She gulped again -speak Italian? She didn't know much Italian other than what she'd learned from the manga!

And searched on Google Translate for some of her Fanfictions...

Or roleplays...

"I-I don't... I can't..." she started rather feebly, "I, uhm... I don't... I don't know how to speak... Italian..." she blurted out at last, almost mumbling, as she clutched her bag to herself tighter -too nervous to be surprised that the bag was so soft against her body (and _not_ digging painfully into her side) despite all the hard-cover textbooks and the like she had in there.

"Hmn? Sorry, Dear~ Couldn't quite hear you~!" the effeminate male said kindly, "Now, what did you say?" he asked.

"I-I don't... I... can't... speak Italian," she repeated a bit louder, and blushed, feeling very awkward under the stare she just _knew_ was coming from under the okama's shades.

"...But... you can understand me -or... maybe not?" he thought, his raised brows furrowing, perhaps she had just been trying to point out that she couldn't -no, wait, she had answered to his first question with a 'sure'...

So how...? he was rather confused now.

"Uhm... I don't know why, but... I-I guess it's like... urm..." she couldn't really think of a good way to explain what she was thinking, and, in the end, shook it off, "Ve... N-No... nevermind," she mumbled.

"Oh well~" Lussuria shrugged, sensing her discomfort -_and_ the awkwardness- "Mah~ Your name should be fine for now~" he said with a smile, "Now then, what's your name, darling~~?" the okama asked.

"M-my name...? You... can call me... Kyou..." she said, looking rather nervous, "Kyouya... or Stein, is alright," she said, before thinking of something else.

"O-Or Mikami... I-I also go by Murasaki, o-or..." she started, before Lussuria interrupted, staring at her in surprise (or maybe it was blankly? She really couldn't tell with the shades, though the _feeling_ was sort of 'surprise'...ish... Ok, maybe it _was_ blankness, but either way, she honestly couldn't tell!).

"But... those are all... Why, they're all_ male_ names!" he exclaimed, "Oh my! I'm so sorry, I didn't realize you were a _boy_-" he started.

"N-no! No, I... I'm a girl...!" she protested -not very loudly though- shyly_, _and _just_ (barely) loud enough for him to realize what she was saying- causing the Okama a bit more that 'a little' confusion. Both winced, though, as Squalo (who was _still _arguing -rather idiotically- with the others) rose an octave (or_two_) in voice, becoming -quite amazingly- louder than they would've thought possible.

Well, maybe not. Squalo was a known 'yeller' after all. (_No! No! Not in that way! ...Dirty perverted minds... Bad! Bad brain!_ she thought mentally.)

"A- Oh..." Now Lussuria was very,_ very _confused (the poor man). Well, at least he had been right, but...

Oh well, he thought, shaking it out of his head, he was sure there was a reason. "Mah~ I'm sure you can come with us for a while~" he said with a smile, "You're such a cute child~ It'll be fun to dress you up~!" he giggled, making her pale.

D-_Dress up_...? She thought nervously, well, at least it wasn't death, or... Or _torture_... Well, _technically_... unless it was a dress -He wasn't going to put her in a _dress_ was he? She rather disliked -okay, _hated_- dresses...

Oh... wait, was he expecting an answer? she blinked. Aaah... she was so confused -no. No, it was the_shock_, yes... The shock was causing her to act shier -and more unusual (or, in her case, 'normal')- than usual...

Yes, that was it! It was also slowing her thought process quite a bit... she told herself, partly in denial, and partly to keep herself from having a mental breakdown... Well, alright, it was more to keep her from 'attacking' (ie. 'glomp') the Varia members... She _did_ love KHR! after all...

And she _really_ did not feel like dying a quite painful and possibly -okay, _definately_ if any of the other had a say in it- gruesome death.

"O-Okay..." she stammered, inwardly grimacing. She was pitiful, really -being reduced to a stuttering_blob_. (Well, maybe not an literal _blob_ really -though she wouldn't be surprised- but mentally! A metaphorical _mental_ blob of stutters... Yes... Yes, _that_ was it!)

Normally, she didn't stutter or stammer -no matter _what_- since she usually just had to repeat herself a few times, since most people didn't hear her due to her 'quiet' nature ...

Well, unless she was with her _friends_. (She didn't really care much for what total strangers thought of her, really. But her friends? She'd rather not weird/creep them out... Although that was doubtable, but-! There _were_ people she'd like to keep _away_.)

Lussuria beamed, completely unaware of the mental monologue, "Wonderful~!" he pretty much twirled as he squealed in joy.

Well, at least _this_ way, her life would be safe at _least_ a little longer, he thought. She didn't have an 'assassin's aura', and, quite honestly, seemed rather intimidated, but he, the Varia's _Virtuous _(-snrk-)_Mama_ would take _good_ care of her!

She was just such a sad-looking (well, she _was_ still in her PJs!), but cute (adorable, the way she looked so ragged and with those 'bambi' eyes...! he squealed at that thought), little creature...

She couldn't be any more than 13 or 14 years old...!

"Ushishishi~ Eh~~ Luss found a (-living- female) toy~? How rare~~!" Bel laughed, speaking at last -and startling the daylights out of the poor girl as Lussuria offered to help her up.

"Gyaa-!" she tripped in surprise, twisting partly due to Lussuria's grip as he tried to pull her back up before she fell, only to throw her at_ Bel_, and causing all _three_ of them (since Bel was still holding Mammon) to fall into a rather ungraceful pile on the forest-floor.

"Ushi...shi... Get _off_... _Peasant,_" Bel scowled -even as he laughed- rather threateningly, as she started to get up- only to cause her to scramble off even faster, when she noticed just _which _(egotistical) Varia member she'd landed on...

She should've _known_ that her landing had been too soft-!

"S-Sorry!" she twittered almost nervously -what _was_ a Peasant like her doing so close to Varia Castle, anyways? thought the (self-proclaimed) 'genius prince'.

"Muu... I'm going to _Fine_ you for that..." Mammon muttered, as Bel got up, dusting himself off, and Mammon did the best he could under the... _circumstances_ (he was still stuck being held by Bel).

"S-Sorry-!" she squeaked, and paled slightly. _Oh god-! _She had only been here... what, a few _minutes_? And she _already _owed Vi-er... _Mammon_- money-!

_And_, knowing the greedy little Arcobaleno, he would probably make it a _huge_ fee...!

"Muu...?" Mammon seemed about to say something (most likely to snap a retort and then say how much she would have to pay -which would probably put her waaay into debt...) before he cut himself off, falling silent for a moment, and speaking again.

"Bel, let go," he ordered, his tone dead serious.

"Ushishishi~ Fine, but I'm taking that out of your pay~~" he sang teasingly -he knew how much the Arcobaleno loved money. (Heck, they all knew! It was why none of them touched his things, let alone bet with him... Although, being the -sometimes- idiots that they were, they would still end up placing bets now and then...)

"No, you won't, you'll still get your hour's worth. Now let me go-!" he snapped, shocking the (self-proclaimed) Genius Prince, as the baby forced himself out of the Prince's (shocked) slack arm, and floated over to the girl, who squeaked slightly in surprise.

_Meh, pathetic_, he thought, dismissing her behavior (after all, how many flying babies could she have ever seen? None, that's how many! ...That reminded him. _Note to self, charge the girl for the 'magic show'_...), as he reached a small hand up towards her neck...

She froze, eyes wide, as the other three (Bel, Lussuria, and Squalo) stared. Squalo had fallen silent as well, and Xanxus had finally appeared -stomping and scowling- but otherwise not saying anything (and, of course, with Levi grovelling ever-_faithfully_ to his boss, a little ways to the side).

"...I retract my earlier statement," he said suddenly, before Xanxus could ask -in his _ever_ caring way- 'what the fuck' was wrong with him. (Aside from the obvious, of course -the whole 'cursed baby of the arcobaleno' thing, that is)

"Lussuria, she'll be in my care from now on -and you" he started, looking and speaking directly at the girl now, "don't have to pay me for earlier," he continued, before cutting Bel off as he was about to grin and say that that meant _he _-being the _Prince_ that he was- wouldn't have to either, "But _you_ two still have to -Lussuria, Bel," he told them, causing protests.

"Ushishi~ What-! Why must the _Prince_ pay when the _Peasant_ doesn't have to-?" he exclaimed (in a 'princely way', of course).

"M-My... Mammon...! I didn't know you were-" the Okama started, before Mammon scowled, shutting them up with his answer, as the others stared.

Mammon wasn't asking for _payment_...?

...The world must be ending.

Mammon scowled, "It's not like_ that_, Idiot Luss," he snapped, before turning to answer Bel, "And _she_doesn't owe me anything because she was sent by my 'Master'!" he growled.

_Gods_ they could be so annoying sometimes-! He honestly would've left a _long_ time ago if the pay weren't so good... he grumbled mentally.

Dead. Silence.

Mammon had _never_ talked about his life before the Varia -and none of them had ever asked. After all, he was _bound_ to ask for a fee they couldn't pa-

"Oh, and I expect three times the S rank payment in my account by tomorrow afternoon just for _that_little tidbit (of information)," he added, before they all groaned -well,_ most_ of them anyways.

Of _course_...

"VOOOOIIIIII! WHAT THE _HELL_ ARE YOU TALKING ABOUT? YOU FUCKIN' BABY-!" yelled Squalo, before being nailed by _-another_ (mysteriously appearing)- shot-glass that shattered in contact with his (apparently _very_) hard, silver head.

"VOIIIII-! I SAID _STOP _THAT ALREADY!" he roared, before grumbling (at, surprisingly, a _normal_ sound level), as Xanxus growled."Stupid Boss-!"

"_Shut up_, trash!" he growled, eyes narrowing as Lussuria wilted in disappointment at Mammon's previous statement -though the little tidbit about his mysterious 'Master' _had_ been nice...

Even _if_ it had been rather... _expensive..._

"Mou~~ Mammon, just_ tell_ us already if we're paying anyways-!" he pouted, hoping that the child was in a good enough mood to give them a _little_ more than the fact that he had had a 'Master' at one point (although, what _kind_ was a good question too -ah! Naughty! Naughty, Naughty mind! he chided himself for the lapse).

Mammon just sighed.

"It can't be helped, then," he grumbled a bit reluctantly. Even _he_ had to admit the price was -_maybe_- a little too steep...

"My Master is a powerful Illusionist," he informed them, "She trained me. And, because I owe her (a_lot_), I won't charge the girl," he told them irritably, "Happy now?" he asked, before adding a "Don't answer that." before the others could ask for more information.

But even this small bit made them wonder (even more) how old the Infant-looking Illusionist_ really_was...

"Ushishishi~ How interesting~~" Bel grinned, "So now _Mammon_ has a new toy~? Ushishi~ Mammon_never_ has toys~~!" the prince smiled rather creepily at the thought, chuckling some more.

Lussuria just sighed, "Well, I guess that means I'll have to find another doll..." he pouted a bit dejectedly -oh well, at leas the girl would be safe...

Well, for a _while_ anyways...

Mammon sighed again, before calculating something else. "You can play with her, if you want -just make sure you take care of her!" he informed the effeminate Assassin (who, by the way, squealed -oh, and jumped- with joy).

"Yay~~ I'll have so much_ fun_ dressing her up~" he grinned, rambling on about so many such and such styles he could make her wear, somewhat day-dreaming now.

By now, though, Mammon had floated back to Bel. And Xanxus, (followed by Levi,) had left, as Squalo scowled at them all.

"VOOOIIII-! BOSS SAYS WE'RE GOING BACK! HE DOESN'T FEEL LIKE DEALING WITH ANY FUCKING _SHIT_TODAY!" he 'told' the others.

"Muu..." at this, Mammon turned to 'Kyouya', "Don't get lost -we'll talk when we get back to the Castle," he grumbled, before Bel (silently but 'obediently' -of course, he'd never_ admit_ it) left, uttering only a 'Shishishi' before turning and disappearing after the others.

"Mah, let's go then, shall we~~?" Lussuria asked rather pleasantly, turning to the (somehow) almost forgotten girl, who just nodded.

"O-Okay..." said -'almost forgotten'- girl was _so_ confused right now...

* * *

**At Varia Castle...**

Lussuria had seen it fit to make her change almost_ immediately_ as soon as they got to the Castle, going on about the 'dreadful' and 'disgraceful' state that her clothes were in.

(Well, one couldn't really be surprised, considering that she had still in her_ pajamas_ when she had so suddenly seemed to mysteriously appear in the forest... Which, had happened to be the _exact_ one that surrounded the Varia Castle...)

As she changed, she realized that her hair was alsi_ longer_.

_D-Don't tell me...?1 _she thought, feeling behind for her hair almost as soon as she'd realized, before looking at herself in front of the mirror (after changing, of course... _And_ gathering up whatever courage she had).

A girl that looked similar to her, but _much _younger -and cuter- looking stared back at her in the mirror, reflecting the shock she just _knew_ she must've be feeling.

_Oh_ great_. _Now _I'll have to re-condition myself not to give my thoughts away all _over_ again..._ she grumbled (pouting somewhat) mentally even more when she saw that her reflection in the mirror was making a face (even as it stared back) at her.

It looked -and _felt_- odd. Seeing her 'new self' in the mirror.

Especially added to the fact that, for _now_ (at the very least), she was wearing a smaller sized Varia Uniform (Lord only _knew_ where Lussuria had gotten it from) with a grey t-shirt under the jacket since the Varia jacket was still just a little too big on her, as well as an almost raven-black (what looked kinda like a silk, possibly) choker/collar lying snugly around her neck, with a silver insignia (or so she was _guessing_) dangling off of it.

The 'pendant' looked rather like a twisted one of those little time thingies -what were they called? The little glass things with sand filling it to tell the time...?

Oh, yes, an _hourglass_. (_That's_ what it looked like! A shiny silver, _twisted_ hourglass.)

In any case, she figured that that must have been that old lady (the one she'd met on the street)'s symbol. For who_ else_ could have sent her here? Especially looking like this-! Who the old lady was, though, she put off for the moment, as it would most likely end up becoming too confusing in her mind -_especially _considering that she was apparently Vip -er, _Mammon_ (she was never going to get used to calling the Arcobaleno Mammon anymore)- 's so-called 'Master'.

She could only guess that the woman had been the fabled (or mythical) 'witch' that was said to travel through time and space. Well, either _that_ or Mammon was somehow related to her...

_Urgh,_ she shook her head, turning her eyes back to the mirror as she lightly fingered the silver pendant -the necklace she _usually_ wore (an ice-green jade pendant that her parents had given her so long ago) was missing _-gone_- along with the faded sterling 'Big Sister' pendants that had once rested on the chain beside it.

The pendant that her best-friend-slash-almost-_sister_ had given to her. The very same one who _also_held said pendant's other half. (It was a half heart with the word 'Big Sis' on one side, and 'Little Sis' on the other.)

She bit her lower lip slightly, forcing her mind not to dwell on this depressing little tidbit when she felt a small wave of homesickness sweep across her (though she pushed it back almost as soon as she felt it), as she studied her reflection again -more objectively this time.

Somehow, the pants were alright (thank _goodness_ Lussuria had not gotten her a skirt! Although, she_had_ noticed that the Varia seemed to consist of mostly males -Lussuria didn't count in her mind, and Mammon's gender was supposedly a mystery, though it has been speculated mostly that he was _male_. A thought that she prefered. Besides, his voice sounded rather male-ish, despite being so high -then again, a _child's_ voice, and most children had pretty high-pitched voices).

And the Black boots were nice, too (she'd have to thank Lussuria for them later), though, when she looked back up to the reflection of her face, she was still startled (her hands were a little different, too, smooth, and slender, but not really pale, or tan -just somewhere in-between the two shades like the rest of her body seemed to be).

She looked _normal_, really.

Or rather, she _would_ have looked normal if not for the clothes. Clothes that made her look like a smaller, and more feminine, (onyx haired, of course) version of Squalo due to her long hair. _And_because she was so slender. Although, to be honest, it was -_probably_- mostly because she was wearing the Varia uniform (with the collar flipped up) like all the others seemed to wear it -well, except for _Xanxus_, of course, who just used the thing more as a 'cape' or _cloak_ than a jacket...

A knock on the door startled her, causing her to shoot up from the full-sized mirror towards the door.

"Y-Yes?" she called out, voice trembling just a _tiny_ bit in surprise, before she winced. She _really_ hoped that the stuttering wouldn't become a habit...

It was annoying, even in her own _mind_ let alone her _ears_.

"I hope you don't mind, but I'm coming in, dear~~" the familiar Okama called out, before turning the doorknob.

"L-Lussuria-san-!" she flinched slightly when the door opened, startled enough to carelessly slipping into Japanese (She could speak it moderately well and it _was_ useful -especially since she was an 'Otaku', and _that_ meant that she could watch the Original 'Raw' versions of the Anime, though she _did_prefer the use of English subtitles since she _did_ sometimes forget words), causing the feminine (but male, _clearly_ male) member to pause halfway through a compliment.

"Oh my~~!" he squealed, "You look so _adorab_- wait, what?" he blinked, pausing -somehow having managed to get right in front of her within a second or so of opening the door.

She blinked, "I-I'm sorry, should I not have called you that...?" she asked rather worriedly, "O-Or maybe you prefer Lussuria-nee? Or Lussuria-nee-san?" she asked, starting to Panic mentally, as Lussuria seemed to hold back tears (of joy -not that she noticed in her _panic_. She was at the point of almost flailing her arms physically as well as mentally trying to figure out what she had done wrong... and rather unsuccessfully too, if she had actually bothered to really _think_ about it thoroughly).

"O-Or does that insult you? I-I'm so sorry-! I-" she was starting to babble when she was suddenly cut off by the green-haired male.

"Oh, _caro_! Why didn't you tell me you could speak Japanese before?" he exclaimed, as he hugged her all of a sudden.

"Please! _Do!_ Do feel free to call me Lussuria-nee-! Or- no, better yet, just Luss-nee! Yes, just call me Luss-nee, darling~~~!" he exclaimed, as he started purring for some reason, rubbing his cheek against her head.

Oh, this was rather... yeah... This was just..._ awkward_... she thought, sweating slightly before she started to feel faint-headed.

"L-Luss-nee...?" she started, trying to push the (_extremely)_ strong male away from her so that she could breath, but said man didn't seem to notice... Although she _did_ notice that his muscles really _were_as hard as rock.

"Oh my, yes~?" Lussuria squealed, shi- no, practically _glowing_ with joy -forget _shining_-!

"Y-You're... sort of... crushing... me..." she gasped, struggling to get air into her poor, oxygen-deprived lungs, "I-I can't breath..." she gasped weakly, already starting to feel dizzy.

"Oh! Dear_ me_-! So sorry!" Lussuria let go sheepishly, giggling slightly, "By the way, I've been wondering, but... Are you Japanese?" he asked, somewhat serious, but just curious now.

She gasped, and greedily started taking in air, before she could start to breath normally, and, after a small coughing fit, shook her head in answer to Lussuria's question.

"N-No... But you..." she took another breath here, "You could say that I'm... an Otaku..." she told him, feeling _much_ better now that she could feed the much-needed oxygen to her (somewhat) aching lungs.

Lussuria only gasped and squealed in response to this, "Oh~~~ an Otaku~! Even _better!_" he exclaimed, before grasping her hands in his, "Do tell me! What genre's do you like?"

She blushed slightly at the sudden touch, not quite forgetting earlier contact the okama had shared, but answered the question truthfully anyways.

"I-I like... pretty much... all genres..." she mumbled, "E-even... Yaoi and... Yuri..." she said, ending the last word so quietly that the Okama almost missed it over his squealing.

"Yaoi~? Oh darling~~! Where have you _been_ all my life!" he exclaimed, hugging her tightly -_again_.

"L-Luss-nee!" she gasped, as she began to feel the lack of air again. (_Too close, _too close-!_ Personal space bubble -_SPACE BUBBLE! she screamed mentally)

"Oh my~!" he chuckled, letting go, "I don't know _what_ came over me! Sorry again, dear~~

"But- oh, wait, what rating do you read?" he asked -_just_ in case.

"A-Any," she answered, blushing slightly at the question, though it was almost unnoticeable seeing as she had turned pink from _lack of air_, as well.

Lussuria suddenly became serious, "Darling, we simply _must_ get together to talk soon!" he told the poor girl, "Oooh this is so exciting~~!" he squealed, losing all seriousness almost as soon as he started thinking about all that they could _do_ together.

"Aha..." The poor girl just sweat.

Lussuria really _was_ rather easy to please... Well, _usually_, she thought with a light shudder, remembering the man's strange fetish with _dead_ -male- bodies...

"Now then, Mika-chan~" he started, having decided to shorten Mikami to 'Mika' since it was the only name that came even _close_ to a girl's name as he could get -well, with the names she had given _earlier_, anyways (None of them had realized that she hadn't been done talking then, and she had never thought to bring it up). "It's almost time for me to start making dinner~~ Can you cook?" he asked, and squealed once _again_ when she shyly nodded 'yes' in answer.

"S-Somewhat..." she mumbled, starting to get a bit more comfortable around the man now, since Lussuria _was_ a bit like herself -if not more forward, and... well, 'braver', though that was really an understatement- once one was able to get past her multiple _titanium-steel_ defenses...

"Oh dear~ You are simply _heaven-blessed_, child! You don't mind helping me in the kitchen, do you~?" he asked, pulling out two rather... _frilly_... aprons out from (seemingly) nowhere.

"I don't mind," she agreed, accepting the -_thankfully_- pale blue (and _not_ pink!) Apron, as Lussuria put on the bright pink one.

The color... it... it burned her_ eyes_... her poor -fragile- _non_-pink-resistant eyes...

But she just shook her head and blinked it away (she had strayed away from the color -bright Neon pink- for _so_ long that she was no longer used to it, though she had a distinct feeling that she'd be getting used to it soon -well, at least it was on the (_minorly_) paler side of the spectrum, and didn't hurt as much as she knew that a brighter pink would have), not feeling the need to 'bother' Lussuria about her 'allergy' to bright pink.

She managed to get the plain, pastel-blue/periwinkle apron on without any trouble as she waited, trying to figure out what she should do next.

"Oh, adorable~~!" Lussuria squealed, though he -_somehow_- managed to refrain from hugging her again -she was _such_ an adorable child-! He thought, not troubled in the_ least_ that said 'child' (or so he_thought_), though being only maybe... 13 or 14, was already reading such _highly rated _**Yaoi** manga.

Although, if he _had_ thought to ask, perhaps things would have turned out differently...

_Much_ differently...

* * *

In the kitchen, 'Mika-chan' (which, apparently, her 'official' nickname was -as far as Luss was concerned, in any case) proved to be a helpful asset, seeing as she apparently used to cook for her brother -and family- on occasion, before she had left home (for college, but Lussuria seemed to think that she was a run away for some reason, and, sadly, didn't even think to ask, not wanting to broach what might be a 'painful' subject).

"Mammon, do you mind if I keep her~~?" he asked suddenly, as the Varia Officers (and 'Mika', who was sitting somewhere next to Lussuria and across from Mammon) sat down at the dinner table.

[The order was Xanxus at the head of the table -of course- with Levi and Squalo on either side, and, next to Squalo was Lussuria, then Mika, while next to Levi was Bel, then Mammon.]

Tonight's dinner was Steak... Of _course_. Though there were also a few vegetables (Mika had, somehow, managed to show Lussuria how to make them somewhat _tasty_) that smelled rather good, despite being covered in what looked like a clear whitish gravy (which had resulted from the use of potato starch, as Mikami had explained to Lussuria), that, after Mammon had started with (no one really trusted Mika and Lussuria's tastes -for all they knew, both had odd taste buds), and -much to the other's surprise- seemed to like it (well, he hadn't said anything and just eaten it all without complaint, so it couldn't be _bad_ -Mammon had high standards after all~~).

Levi tried it too, making a face as he put it in his mouth before chewing it thoughtfully, and swallowed...

Nothing happened. He ate more.

Squalo and Bel had actually poked at it a bit, before Squalo dared to eat it, and, yelling a "VOOIIII! THIS STUFF AIN'T HALF BAD-!" started (rather, eh... 'enthusiastically') chowing down.

Xanxus, meanwhile, didn't even _look_ at his vegetables, let alone touch it -even with the fork. (Instead of stabbing it and killing it like one would have expected, he just _completely_ ignored it.)

Lussuria just grinned before smiling at the girl sitting beside him, who actually looked rather relieved as she ate -slowly, and meticulously.

Mammon had been drinking... _whatever_ the clear amber liquid in his cup was... when Lussuria had suddenly spouted the sentence.

"..." It took him a moment to ingest this bit of information, keeping himself from uncouthly spitting his drink out like Squalo had (at Levi, the poor man [note the sarcasm], who glared as he wiped his face, silently promising a painful death to the shark as he muttered -all the while being ignored by the silver-haired man, who just took to staring at the scene playing out. Xanxus ignored them all).

"Why... do you want her?" he asked rather curiously, though he didn't disagree -just _yet_.

He had, after all, been told (long ago) by his 'Master' that he would be required to help/care for anyone with her 'symbol' (That, and he was _sort _of curious why Luss would bring it up -the question, that is- when he tended to prefer the male species... usually _dead_ ones, too) -of course, there was a slight test that he could use to figure out if it was real, but it was quite easy for him to tell the fakes from the real ones (not that he had ever encountered any at _all_, let alone any _fakes_)...

In fact, she was the first one he had met -he himself had a 'charm' like it, though he kept it hidden. It was slightly different, though, seeing as he had been her apprentice for a while before he had been chosen as an Arcobaleno.

She had disappeared after that...

"Oh, she's simply wonderful~" he exclaimed, doing a slight wriggle in his seat that made (_most_ of) the others at the table shudder. None of them really wanted to know what kind of perverted thoughts he was thinking (if any at all).

The girl beside him just blushed, and continued to eat, trying to pretend that she was _not _the main topic of discussion...

"She can cook~!" he exclaimed, "And she's just_ such_ an adorable child!" he said -thankfully (for Mika), not mentioning anything about being an 'Otaku' or reading certain... eh..._ things_... (ie. Yaoi) which would have embarrassed her to no end... Not to mention it would probably have estranged her from the rest, when she was being estranged enough as it _was_ thank you very much-!

"Isn't that reason enough~?" he asked.

"..." Mammon thought about this -if he gave the girl to him... she would no longer be _his _burden...

But seeing as this was _Lussuria_... He gave a slight mental shudder (though he didn't show it physically).

If anything happened to her, he just _knew_ his Master would somehow find him and 'punish' him accordingly for his disobedience. And one thing he had learned about his Master (and it was, in fact,_engrained_ into his mind) -was that you did _not_ disobey a direct order...

She was just too powerful, and, truth be told, he honestly doubted that she was really 'dead'. The energy signature left on his new-found charge was just _too_ recent, the trace of his master was_much_too fresh... Almost as if she were telling him that she was still alive -which he didn't doubt she would do, not that he had doubted it at all (the fact that she was alive)...

"No," he said at last -much to Lussuria's disappointment, "She is my charge -_but_ if you wish to 'take care of' and provide for her, by all means, do," he told him, bringing the glass to his lips again.

"So long as _I_ don't have to pay for anything of course," he added almost in afterthought, the glass pausing halfway, before he finally took a sip.

Lussuria squealed -this basically meant he could have her~! he thought, after all, if he 'took care of' her, she was basically_ his_ charge! She would only be Mammon's charge in _name_ -and that was just fine with him~~!

"Oh, you do know that she was the one helping me in the kitchen~?" he added suddenly, causing quite a few of them to sputter -practically spitting their drinks out, much to Lussuria's disapproval.

"Oh stop that!" he chided, "She's a _perfectly _good cook! She was the one who taught me how to make the broccoli you were wolfing down earlier!" he pouted.

Mikami flushed, shrinking a bit into her seat, almost as if she were to melt into the woodwork -oh, this was _so_ embarrassing...! she groaned mentally as all of them stare at her (excluding Lussuria, and Xanxus -who just didn't care- of course).

Mammon said nothing, and Bel actually _frowned_.

Levi just stared, twitching slightly, as he decided that he could -and _would_- just puke out all of what he had eaten just then _later_ -in the privacy of his own toilet of course. [-cough-_Anorexic!_-cough-]

Squalo, oblivious as always, just yelled, "VOOOIIII! WHAT THE HELL?1" just for the sake of yelling...

Oh, and because he honestly couldn't believe that Lussuria had been 'stupid' enough to let a total_newbie_ into the kitchen -what if she'd poisoned them?

She had only been there for a day -no, even_ less_ than that, too!

"..." silence greeted the exclamation, as Lussuria pouted. (For once, Xanxus didn't feel the need to throw a glass at the shark's head. Not only was he -somewhat- thinking the same thing (as were the_rest_), but it was getting fucking _expensive_ to replace the damned glasses-! And if he had to stop throwing glasses at the damned shark to get his high-grade liquor, then he would stop fucking throwing the damn glasses at the damn shark!)

"Oh, come_ on_ now! She's perfectly harmless~!" he chided -which did _not_ make her feel better... at _all_.

No, it made her feel _worse_.

Why? Well, maybe because she was _defenseless_ in a Castle full of_ homicidal maniacs_...! (No offense to the Varia -she still loved them, but... they were assassins! And, needless to say, that meant they could_easily_ take out a _completely weaponless_ and _defenseless_ 'civilian'-!)

Lussuria not withstanding...

* * *

**A/N**: *sugar high has worn off* So... yeah! (XD) This chapter came out faster than I thought it would~ :hearts:

4,952 Words {Now 7,437}! (XD) Just 119 words less than the first chapter! (XD) Lol.

I guess I'm getting a little better~ (=D)

Thanks again, to **Jestie Kiryuu**! (^w^) Oh, and about Mammon -it never specified, so I figured, why not? (talking about being the Witch's apprentice -like Fran and Mukuro's relationship)

**Spanner**: Ah... you're safe to be around again... *comes out from hiding from a hatch from underground*

**Me**: Geh-! *jumps* Don't startled me, Span-chan! *pouts*

**Spanner**: ...Uh... sorry? *thinking: _'Span-chan'...? meh, oh well_*

**Me**: In any case! *turns to readers* Like I was saying! I was trying to come up with some stuff during school-

**Spanner**: ...But shouldn't you be doing _schoolwork_ during school...? Last I checked, you were late on a whole bunch of-

**Me**: *cuts Spanner off* Shush-! No one needs to know that! *pouts* In any case, like I was saying -I was trying to think of a reason for the Varia to accept her (cuz I actually wrote to the part where Squalo suddenly appears in front of her) without killing her!

And I did! (XD) I mean, I only got the idea that Mammon could take her in, but then it just flowed the way it is now, seeing as she and Lussuria would get along, and... meh, that's it (=P)

Which is basically saying that this entire chapter is to explain _why_ the Varia hasn't killed her on sight...

Oh, and about Levi -he's the only character I dislike *crosses out and puts in "HATE"* with a passion -in fact, the only character I hate! In case I haven't mentioned...

(=D) Oh, and I'm moving the rating to 'M' just cuz I'm not going to filter language -and...

Well, there _may_ be yaoi scene descriptions... for... yaoi books... that Lussuria owns, at least, if not Mika-chan~

Of course, I just type this story directly onto Fanfiction, so... Yeah...

It was all by wing! (XD)

**Spanner**: *sweats* ...Isn't that... bad?

**Me**: What, the wing thing? *tilts head slightly*

**Spanner**: Yeah...

**Me**: Oh well, *shrugs* It's just how I am! (=D) I tend to just type things, cuz writing it down's too much of a pain -unless I need to get it down before I forget it. I can forget things faster than you can say 'I'! (XD)

**Spanner**: "I"? *confused*

**Me**: Huh? *confused as well*

**Spanner**: *shakes head* No, nothing *sweats*

**Me**: Oh, okay... In any case, before Rei-chan appears again to nag me... Here's today's Disclaimer person! (XD)

Say hello to... Lussuria~! (^w^)

**Lussuria**: Hi~! :hearts: *waves* And hello to you too, darling~ :hearts: *winks at Me&Spanner*

**Me**: Yo~! Lussuria~ Mind doing the Disclaimer for me :hearts: ?

**Lussuria**: Of course not, Yaoi-buddy~ :heart: ! (^w^)

Murasaki-_chan _doesn't own Reborn! But she _does_ own Mika-chan~

And whoever else decides to show up that's not part of the Original Reborn! By Akira-chan~!

**Me**: (XD) Thankles, Luss-han~

**Lussuria**: (=D) No problem, darlin'~ I'm getting somehow out of this, after all~ *winks*

**Me**: (XD) Too true! I shall do my best~! *salutes*

**Lussuria**: Well then, Ta-ta for now~ *waves before leaving*

**Me**: Bye-bi's~

**Spanner**: Is it over? *bored, and on fifth wrench loli*

**Me**: Yep! So say bye, Span-chan!

**Spanner**: ...Bye...

**Me**: _Matta ne!_


	4. Homicidal Princes & Assassination Attemp

**Stuck in the KHR! World**

_A_ Katekyo Hitman Reborn! _Fanfiction_

_by_ **Murasaki Argenteria**

* * *

3. **Homicidal Princes and Assassination Attempts!**

* * *

After dinner, Lussuria showed her to an empty room -they didn't have a certain 'type' of Officer, so she could stay there for now, seeing as she was the _only_ girl in the entire castle.

Somehow, that didn't really shock her, at least, not as much as the fact that they were giving her the room that the _Cloud Guardian_ was supposedly supposed to stay in...

Well _Fuck_... {Pardon the language... again.}

At least it was a semi-normal looking room, she thought absently, looking around the room. The entire color scheme seemed to be a monochrome grey and greyish-purple (not that she was complaining).

The colors suited her fine. It was a bit like Lussuria's room except for the fact that it just had a _darker_feeling somehow...

A full wardrobe stood to one side, close to a what looked like a curtain that led to a balcony -or a large window (she had yet to look and figure out which)- while the bed was set at the center against the wall to the right from the door they had just come in.

Another door stood beside the wardrobe, to the left (what she assumed to be a bathroom, seeing as there was a single large Wardrobe, and several dressers in the room). A small dresser stood at one side of the Queen-sized bed in the middle, while a simple -yet intricately designed- desk with several drawers stood on the other. There was also another dresser on the other side of the room, standing in the corner between the bathroom as well as the doorway they currently stood in.

It was actually much nicer than any room she'd ever stayed in -_including_ Hotels.

By the time that she had finished taking the first look around the dim room, her eyes were almost wide as plates. She stared at the room -_really_ taking it in this time- before looking back at Lussuria, gaping, turning back to the room, then Lussuria, once more, in speechlessness.

She swallowed. "A-Are you sure...?" she asked, eyes filled with what might have been considered awe, as Lussuria chuckled and nodded.

"Yes, sweetheart. It's all yours~ Besides, no one's staying in the room right now -and we can always spruce up one of the Guest rooms for our Clo- I mean... 'missing officer'," he said with a kind smile.

She really _was_ rather adorable in his mind, though he _did _curse the fact that he had almost let slip about the Cloud Guardian and possibly the Mafia World -oh well, it wasn't like the Gola Mosca actually_needed_ a room... yet (after all, it had yet to even_ arrive_ so why not let her have it? Besides, this way they'd be able to keep an eye on her as well).

He was quite sure that it would be much more practical to fix up one of the 'Guest Rooms' for all of the equipment that would be needed to keep it 'online'. Besides, he didn't want to drag her into anything Varia -let alone _Mafia_- related, though he supposed it _was_ a bit too late, he mused absently.

But Mammon _had_ told them -while he had sent Mika-chan to the kitchen to get dessert- that she seemed to be an ordinary girl so far...

It didn't seem that she was quite 'special' in any way, though it _did_ perplex them a bit. But, luckily -or unluckily- Mikami had come back in right before before any of the others had the chance to yell or shout about the little 'tidbit' -after all, who_ knew_ how she would react if she found out about their... 'profession'...?

Of course, they didn't know that she already _knew_, and just didn't mind -in fact, she was _kind _of hoping that she might get the chance to try it out herself since the Varia never seemed to get caught.

Oh, and she figured it might be fun...

Cue entrance of the sadistic side of what _seemed_ to be an innocent girl... so far. As she got less 'shy', though, she was bound to have sporadic bursts of her 'true nature' appear. Though, of course, none of the Varia knew _that_... Yet.

But, coming back to the real world, Lussuria saw the gratitude shining in the girl's eyes, as she gave him a rather beautific smile that he was _sure _would have the (normal) boys swooning -though that may have just been his proud/spoiling 'parental side' coming out... Since, somehow, he was already attached to her, though they had yet to share any of their likes other than the fact that they both liked_Yaoi_.

"Thank you..." she said softly.

She was too quiet, he thought absently, well, a few more days of living here and she would have the problem taken care of, he thought, somewhat pitying the girl for the hell she would be going through -and the innocence that (so he _thought_) would definitely be lost.

Especially with the cussing problem most the Varia seemed to have (which, coincidentally, reminded him -he was going to have to have a 'talk' to the underlings about _staying away_ from her, and pretending to be 'normal' in her presence)...

He just smiled back at her kindly in response -she must've been _so_ deprived~! He thought with a small mental sigh.

"Oh, no problem at all, darling~ I don't really think our Missing officer will care, since they haven't even moved in yet~" he laughed.

"Now then~! I've got some clothes stored for you in the wardrobe, and we can go shopping later for things that you might prefer~" he continued, "but for now, I think you should rest and take care of yourself a bit, ne?" he said with a wink, smiling. He really _did_ want to spoil her rotten...

"The uniform -cute as it is on you, darling- is _not_ what a (normal) girl should be wearing~!" he chided gently, hoping that she hadn't gotten too attached to or comfortable in the clothes...

It was too late for that though. She _had_. In fact, she had become very fond of it -it suited her quite well in her mind (personality), and it was one of the few things she probably wouldn't mind wearing whatever the occasion -informal yet formal.

_Perfect_ for someone who could rival Bel in laziness at times... Right?

But, she nodded anyways, "Okay, Luss-nee," she agreed, smiling up at him again, causing him to chuckle, ruffling her hair a bit as he did so.

She really _was_ too adorable~~ He thought, smiling right back at her.

"Well then, Lussuria-nee-sama needs to go primp, and get ready for bed as well, so... _Arrivederci_, Mika-chan~~" he called back, waving a hand in farewell as he left the room for his own, "I'll come check on you later, ne~?" he called before disappearing, barely catching the girl's nod, and her slight smile.

He really _was_ so nice, she couldn't help but think as he walked away. She had always _known_ there was a reason why she had always liked the man so much...

Oh, but... She _still_ hated Levi though -with a _passion_. She couldn't really explain _why_ if asked -she just... didn't like him.

It was just like how there were people in the world who could annoy you without even trying or meaning to -even _if_ that person had done nothing wrong, but they _still_ ticked you off for some unkown reason regardless...

But, at least she knew that -at one point in the future, at least- a certain 'something' (bad -or so it would be to the man) would happen, and, though she was unlikely to still be there when it happened, she _really_ hoped that she would be able to see it -and laugh in his face- when the time came...

With that thought, she shut the door Lussuria had disappeared down the hall through and rummaged around the almost-full Wardrobe for _something_ that she wouldn't mind wearing to sleep...

Eventually, she found a grey two-piece.

The top had a slightly ruffled grey shirt that looked almost like a skirt though it looked rather suspiciously like a slightly longer version of the ruffled white shirt that the Cervello wore (She really wouldn't be surprised if it were him -Lussuria- that had made/decided their outfits for the Ring Battles, she had thought absently as she had pulled the shirt over her head).

Not that she minded. The ribbon on it was a darker silvery-grey color, and the (what she could only call) 'leggings' were the same color as the shirt, though it also had the silken ribbons threaded through the bottom part -where the pant-sleeves ended- and tied on either of the outer sides_. Just _above about a half-inch slit at the bottom of the PJs. (It was actually the simplest set of 'night gear' (as she liked to call it) she could find.)

Somehow, though, it just suited her -almost perfectly, in fact.

If Lussuria were there, he would probably have tried to get her to thread a few similarly colored ribbons into her hair, she mused with mild horror. She wasn't a total tomboy (in fact, she was a bit far from it -at least in _her _world) but she wasn't a total _girly-girl_ either.

Lussuria would probably learn that when they went shopping...

She was a bit self conscious, though, and still couldn't get used to the fact that she actually looked rather... _good..._ now, if not different.

(For some reason, she kept thinking that she still had the same body she had always had only to get a bit of a shock whenever she looked in the mirror, though, it really was rather normal seeing that_anyone_ would be a bit disconcerted if they just suddenly woke up with a _completely_ different body and face one day...)

She was alright with dresses that went all the way down to her ankles -almost like a Yankee, one could say- but she just _hated_ skirts...

The day she even _contemplated_ wearing a mini-skirt would be the day the world ended.

Or, at least, that was what she and her friends had always thought, seeing how she would stay as far away from _any_ skirt that was free to be worn if she saw any (_other_ people wearing skirts was okay -at least, so long as it wasn't a guy with _hairy legs_ wearing them...).

Either way, once she had taken her shower (there was a bath, but she didn't couldn't quite bring herself to trust any of the Varia -excluding Lussuria (and now Mammon)- not to just _barge in_ if they had a problem or wanted something with/from her -like, say... her _death_? A shower was just safer for her -well, for _now_, at least- she figured, putting on the outfit she had picked out.

But, still feeling a bit self-conscious, she looked around the room before her eyes were drawn to... the_bed_. The bed, where _quite_ a few various sized pillows lay in neat, symmetrical piles -pillows that matched her current outfit as well (especially seeing as the color scheme was _grey _and purple)!

She picked up a fair-size pillow before rummaging around her bag for the not-quite-dull, but shiny, Kunai she had also thought to put in.

They were a bit larger than Bel's knives in size, but no less 'beautiful' -not to mention that it would also add at _least_ a tiny boost of confidence that she would be able to protect herself at the very least should she need to, if a dangerous situation were to arise.

But, before she had even taken a single step away, she thought,_ better to take the entire bag along as well_.

_Just_ in case...

* * *

"Ushishishi~" Bel happened to see the girl -what's her name? Mikari or something...? {Mikami, actually~ XD _Honestly_, Bel-kun! XP}

Oh well, he thought, shrugging, it didn't matter (she _was_ still a peasant after all~), as he watched the girl come out of her room, holding a large pillow nearly half her size and wearing a messenger bag, as she looked around, her very person radiating caution and hesitance.

Of course, being the _genius_ Prince that he was, he wasn't spotted (actually, he was hiding around the corner -a place where he could easily see her, but she couldn't see him... or sense him... yet) before he thought he'd have a bit of fun -Mammon wasn't there at the moment, so he could have a little _fun_without having to worry about bribing the brat to stay silent.

And so it was, that he decided to follow her to see what she was up to (no, he was _not_ 'stalking' her, Princes did _not_ 'stalk'... They followed -_politely_- at a respectful distance)...

He followed her quietly as she wandered down the hall, seemingly just looked around and getting used to the place, though she wasn't really straying too far from the hall where their rooms were. She_obviously_ didn't want to be lost, seeing as she was new here -and not many_ could _not get lost the first time there, well, unless they were _residents_ of said castle, but even _then_ most of them still got lost.

But, of course, not _him_~ He was a Pr-in-ce~~!

Eventually, though, he noticed that she seemed to be getting braver, and walked out of the area -towards the balconies if he remembered correctly (which, of course, he _did_. He _was_ a Prince after all!)~~

And of course, he was. Luckily (for her), it was a balcony that was connected to the hall that the Varia's Officer (bed)rooms were.

She seemed rather anxious as she looked around, though, he noted, her large-ish {Yes that is a word... in my book *shifty eyes*} grey eyes darting here and there before her body started relaxing a bit.

She obviously thought she was alone~ he thought, as he started grinning when he got a sudden_bright_ idea.

Well, since he _was_ bored -and she _seemed_ bored (in his twisted mind at least)- why not have a little_fun_...? he'd thought, pulling out one of his many knives, as the mischievous grin grew sadistic...

This did _not _bode well for the girl.

* * *

'Mika', as she now seemed to be called (just _one_ more nickname to be chalked up on the almost never-ending list now... she thought), sighed, hugging the pillow closer to her body as she allowed herself to relax a bit, the pillow protecting her body from the cold stone railing, as she leaned over a bit, hugging said pillow.

She had not noticed Bel following her, or she would have been a _lot_ warier as she stared up at the night sky -it was so _pretty_ though...

_Shlink_-! She froze, the sound of metal being drawn drawing her attention, though she didn't turn (no need to tip the 'attacker' off, right?) as she slowly reached for one of her hidden Kunai -only for her hackles to rise and to find a rather _sharp_ point _at her throat_..._!_

"Ah-ah-ah~~" denied the voice of the mysterious 'attacker' -who could _only_ be a certain Prince. She didn't allow herself to relax, though, just because it was someone she _knew_ (technically speaking).

"B-Belphegor..." she stammered, eyes wide as she suppressed a gulp, and Bel reached for the Kunai she had been trying to get inconspicuously so as not to alert the other she had known he had been there. (Well, at least once the metal had been pulled out and had flashed slightly in th moonlight...)

"Ushishishi~ The Prince would ask how you knew his name, but the Prince _is_ famous, so_ obviously_people know about him~" he said rather haughtily, "But, the Prince never knew that the _Peasant_ had any weapons~" he grinned, "Interesting~ Shishi~" he said, playing around with the Kunai in one hand as the other kept one of his own knives held to her throat.

"Ushishi~ But it's not like it'll do anything to me~ Such a strange, dull knife~" he chuckled, the black blade twirling expertly between his slim fingers.

"C-Could you please... move... the knive away, B-Bel-sa- I mean, S-Signore... Belphegor?" she asked, hoping that she gotten it right (the phrase -well, _word_, technically...).

Bel just laughed ("Ushishishi~") as he pressed the knife closer to her throat, barely touching it, but still close enough to cause her to bleed a little just from taking a small breath.

"The Prince is a _Principe_, not a _Signore_, Peasant~ _Remember that,_" he hissed gently into her ear, as she suppressed another gulp and a shiver at the menacing threat behind the simple words.

"O-Of course... Belphegor... Principe..." she agreed, hoping she got it right _this_ time (with the pronunciation).

"Ushishishi~ The Peasant learns fast~" he said, pretty much_ mocking_ her now.

"Well, I suppose the Prince _is_ feeling benevolent," he said airily (and _lazily_), as she sighed in relief, the knife gone, as he waved his hand airily -almost as if he were dismissing a _servent_...

Which he probably_ did _think of her as, she thought rather dryly, rubbing her throat. (Thank goodness it had been a really shallow wound and had already stopped bleeding -she did _not_ want a hole in her throat. It would be awkward... and rather disgusting, seeing as stuff would come out every time she swallowed something...)

"But, since the Prince is interested in you, the Prince shall play with you a bit more~~ I shall allow you to enter my Princely room," he said haughtily, before turning on his heel -obviously expecting her to follow. "You should be honored~"

She sighed. Well, she _supposed_ it couldn't hurt...

_Too_ much. And, seeing the Bel was most _definitely_ stronger than her, she decided it would be in her best interest to do as he said...

For now, at least.

Besides, she could always scream if anything happened... right...?

At least... if it wasn't too_ late_, she thought with a rather morbid shudder.

She was still too young to die...! Or so she would_ say_, if there were anything but Anime or Manga for her to be obsessed with...

Come to think of it, she _was_ in one right now...

_Crap._ she thought with a slight twitch.

The Laws of Anime and the Laws of reality were fundamentally different... weren't they? she pondered this before shrugging it off, and hurrying after the conceited 'genius' Prince when his voice trailed back to her in a half-threat.

Right... she thought grimly, for now she had something _else_ to deal with...

Just _wonderful_, she thought, sighing mentally:

Play day with a Homicidal Prince...

* * *

.  
Bel had been a little surprised when she didn't show any fear (though it was a bit obvious that she scared from the look in her eyes) -but: Eh, oh well._ This_ was pretty interesting, too~ he had thought with a mental shrug.

So now, here they were -in his_ Princely_ room~!

Which, by the way, was_ right_ next door to Mammon and Lussuria's rooms -meaning_ one_ thing:

The Peasant's room was right across from his (_almost_, anyways -it was actually between Mammon and Bel's on the opposite side, but, in any case, the rooms went like this:

Mammon, Bel, and Lussuria on one side; while Mika was across from Mammon/Bel, next to Squalo, who was next to_ Levi_ -which, luckily, meant that Mika would _not_ have to deal with Levi... much... though she didn't doubt that she would be getting some (okay, a _lot,_ of) reoccurring headaches sometime soon when she saw that _Squalo_ was her neighbor.

And, of course, Xanxus's room was (_kinda_... almost) beside Levi's, though it was actually one of his 'offices', and his _actual_ room was opposite the hall that the other Member's rooms were {Think "T" shaped hallway}. After all, he didn't want to deal with 'Trash' like them, nor did he want to be grouped with _scum_. ..._His_ words, _not _hers!1

In _any_ case, Bel was currently enjoying the unadulterated _awe_ in the Peasant's now wide eyes (oh, and her pale lips parted slightly in a silent gasp/gape/whatever -what? Not like he really _cared_ how much of a fool she was making out of herself... okay, so it _was_ rather amusing, so sue him).

He laughed, it really _was_ rather amusing~~

She had _obviously_ never been in a Prince's room let alone _seen_ one!

...Pft. Like a _Peasant_ would normally have such a chance anyways~~

* * *

To say she was surprised would have been _quite_ an understatement...

She was _shocked_ to say the least.

I mean, _yeah_, she'd already figured that he would probably have a whole bunch of jewelry in his room (at the very least) -but she didn't expect _this-!_

'This' being a room (not unlike the one she had been assigned by Luss) that had golden plush carpeting, and a large, King-sized bed to the right of the door against the center of said wall -and draped with silver and gold sheets, and what looked like satin curtains half-covering it like one of those 'Princess beds'.

The wood-ware was obviously top of the class as well, and was embedded with silver and gold designs depending on the piece.

On one wall was a collection of jewelry that seemed to be ordered by type -and a whole bunch of _other_factors (ie _shininess_)- while his bed had a... well, a sort of neat pile of soft -but _expensive_- looking teddies and plushies to one side...

She absently wondered if he actually slept with those.

_Actually... that'd be kind of _cute_..._ she realized, as she thought about it some more.

Yeah... Bel sleeping like a baby with plushies surrounding him...

She could just imagine it~~! She bit back a light tremor of a smile for fear of offending him as she looked around more.

The most common thing, though, she found, was the fact that there were so many _shiny _things (she was also pretty sure that he had a whole closet's worth of knives hidden somewhere, too)...

And it was such a _pretty _looking room, yet there was enough masculinity to the place that _no _one (well, unless they were _really_, really dense) could mistake it for a girl's room.

Even if she hadn't known it was Belphegor's room upon entrance, she probably would've guessed it was his when she saw it.

It just somehow suited the _princely_ teen -almost _too_ well, actually...

"Ushishishi~ Is the Peasant surprised~~?" Bel asked suddenly, causing her to freeze when he -lightly- tapped a cold metal surface to her neck.

"Ushishi~ Well, I suppose that'd be normal since this _is_ the Prince's room -it's not often a Peasant like you gets to see a room like mine~" he grinned, speaking lightly and... one could suppose _teasingly_ if not for the knife held loosely in his hand.

Wait a second... he never gave back her Kunai! she realized after a moment.

"U-Uhm," she gulped, not daring to turn, _just_ in case, "Belphgor-s -Principe," she started, hastily amending her choice of words before the other noticed before going on, "W-would it be too much to ask if... if I could have my K-kunai back...?" she gulped slightly, suppressing a slight twitch and shudder as she waited for his answer patiently -or, at least, as patiently as she possibly _could_.

But_, damn_-! The stutter was back...

Bel just laughed, but seemed to think about it for half a second before replying.

"Hmn~ No," he said at last, removing the knife -he knew Mammon would seriously charge him if she were injured, "But, its a Kunai, huh?" he murmured he murmured to himself, playing with -what she realized to be- _her_ 'knife'.

"E-eh?" she blinked.

"Ushishi~" Bel just grinned, "Well, I already knew that~ But one would have to wonder why you have a 'Kunai' like this in your possession~" he said a bit louder for her benefit, grinning wider.

"The Prince thinks he'll be taking this in any case~ The peasant may leave now," he said, waving her away.

She bit back a protest, sighing. After all, it'd be useless to argue with him like this -especially when she was at an obvious disadvantage.

"Alright... Signore Principe..." she backed towards the door a little -facing him, of course- just in case, before leaving.

Bel just laughed his little laugh as he watched her go, playing around leisurely with the Kunai.

Black Iron was hard to come by...

It seemed that things were going to get rather... _interesting_~~ he thought.

"Ushishishi~"

* * *

**The Next Morning**:

Lussuria woke Mikami up as the sun started to shine so that she could help him prepare breakfast, and they talked -well, _Lussuria_ talked, and Mikami commented every once in a while, wondering just_how_ the effeminate man could be so (_clearly_) awake so early in the morning- as they worked...

Breakfast was an almost silent affair, much to her surprise -although it mostly seemed to be because no one (with the except Lussuria and herself compared to the others who looked like zombies..._almost_) really seemed to be quite awake.

In fact, Squalo looked like he might fall asleep into his breakfast (he was lethargically spooning what looked suspiciously like cereal with blue, white, and grey _shark and fish shaped marshmellows_) -Levi, well, the only good thing about him was that he was the stoic type, she thought, as she stuffed a bit more of her share of the omelets they had prepared into her mouth.

She had to admit, though, Lussuria really wasn't that bad a cook -the Varia was just a bit (okay, _more_that just a bit) spoiled about this sort of thing, honestly...

"...Ne, Luss-nee..." she started after swallowing the bit of egg in her mouth.

"Yes, darling~~?" replied the Varia Sun Guardian as he started cleaning up his own plate (he had, surprisingly, finished his food first -one would've expected Squalo or Levi to finish first, but seeing how one was half-dead to the world, and the other was half asleep in his bacon...).

"What are we doing today?" she asked innocently.

Silence met her question.

Lussuria seemed frozen, "Er... W-well, Lussuria-nee has some, ah... _work_... to do today~!" he twittered slightly, panicking a bit, "So I suppose you'll be staying with Mammon...?" he said, looking over at Mammon who looked up, and seemed to sigh, nodding slightly in answer to the 'question'.

"Muu... I suppose it can't be helped," he muttered, soft enough that no one would have heard him if it weren't so abnormally silent at the dining table.

"...Why can't I help you work?" she asked Lussuria, looking slightly disappointed that she wouldn't be able to spend more time with her favorite -and only- 'sister' in the Varia.

More silence.

"Er, well, darling, my-my work is sort of... a... a secret -yes, a secret!" he lied rather obviously, though Mikami seemed to think about this.

Well, if they didn't want her knowing about what the Varia did (yet), she _supposed _she could play along, she thought, before nodding thoughtfully, "Oh, okay. I see," she said smiling as if understanding, though she couldn't hide all of the disappointment she felt -she really _did_ rather like being with Lussuria... He _was_ rather fun.

Damn...

Lussuria seemed to sense it and almost _immediately_ went into mother mode in order to try to cheer her up, "Oh _come_ now, darling~! I'll be back tonight, okay? So you only have to stay with Mammon for a little while -I promise, we'll spend a little girl time together tomorrow -maybe do some shopping~~?" he offered in a rather enticing way.

"...Really?" she asked.

Well, she supposed she might be able to get a few things she needed (and some stuff she'd rather not let the 'boys' know about)...

"Of _course!_ Now, give Luss-nee a hug, so I can go, ok~~?" he said, smiling, as she slipped out of her seat and got up, having finished her food as well.

She nodded, smiling right back, before going up shyly to give him a hug -it always _did_ feel just a bit awkward for her when she hugged a guy...

Luss gave her a rather tight hug -not quite suffocating like last time, but it might almost have been a bear hug were he not watching his strength this time.

"Be safe, okay?" she said softly. She knew that Lussuria would be safe -which she could tell, since Gola Mosca wasn't there yet, and judging from his hair the Ring Battles had yet to happen- but, she had gotten just as attached to him as he had to her within the almost-twenty-four hours they had been together.

Some of the Varia gagged at the mushy scene, but refrained from saying/doing anything.

Luss could be _really _scary when he actually got angry (which was quite rare to tell the truth). It was rather hard to make him really mad, too, unlike Xanxus who was almost always angry anyways. Or, in the words of a now-_deceased_ mafia member he was simply 'just an angry young man with anger management issues'.

In any case, Xanxus was just plain scary -Lussuria, meanwhile, had the _creeper_ factor added in, so...

A chill went through the room.

Just then, though, as she and Lussuria started to collect empty plates and things (so he could _go_), and the rest of the Varia were starting to get up and disperse (with the exception of Xanxus who still sat there eating (if he wanted to take his damn time, he'd take his time, damnit!)), a messenger came in.

Almost immediately, their Assassin Senses seemed to tingle, but they did nothing -yet. (Xanxus because he didn't really care. After all, _one_ of them would take care of the guy if he was an actual threat, otherwise they were just useless scum and that was worse than trash... Well, on _his_ list anyways...)

After all, no need to have a hysterical girl on their hands (not that she _would_ become hysterical -quite the contrary, she would probably be rather interested in the process of the assassin's death) -not to mention that Lussuria and Mammon would _both_ probably do something to them in revenge if they messed up and revealed that they were Assassins or if she got hurt in any way.

One of them getting revenge wasn't so bad -but both of them...

Even Xanxus wouldn't do anything.

"Excuse me!" the Mafia-post uniformed man called, holding up a medium sized crate in his arms, "I have a delivery for a _Signore_ Mammon?"

"...I am Mammon," replied the Arcobaleno, surprising the 'postal courier' with his 'youth'.

"Oh, er... Okay, w-well, sign here, please?" he said, starting towards the baby, though a few of them noticed the slight glint of a weapon hidden in his hands, as he pretended to 'trip' as he nearly reached his destination -Mammon.

"Muu, fine," he grumbled, as if nothing were wrong, though a slight flash of silver did result in the weapon being knocked out of the opposing Assasin's hands, causing the box to fly into the air as Lussuria tried to shield Mikami (from the sight of the attempted -key word, _attempt_ed- assassination).

But, too late -the box was flying right towards her!

"_Idiot_-Bel!" Mammon hissed, as said Prince chuckled nervously.

"Ushishi...? L-Lussuria'll stop it... right?" he offered, giving the infant a mildly nervous grin.

The prince could feel the glare even without being able to see said Baby's eyes. Well, hey! He had been saving the Stingy Baby's _life!_

...Not that he probably need the help... Crap.

The rest of the Varia just stared (again, excluding Xanxus who continued eating as if someone's life wasn't being threatened and nothing was wrong), as everything seemed to go into slow motion, and Lussuria raced towards Mikami, charging Sun-energy up in his fist in order to destroy the box, as Bel finished the Assassin off, scowling at his misfortune before tossing the body over to Levi, who -for some reason- seemed to be feeling complacent for once (though it probably had something to do with not wanting to 'bother' the "Boss"), and hurried to get the body out of the room without being seen despite the blood dripping from it -and onto him.

_Damn_, Lussuria was going to have a fit...

Oh well, at least it was the hardwood and not the carpet. (He always got prissier because of how 'hard it was to get stains out of carpeting' and he'd go into a rant about how 'no one appreciates the work that I do around here!')

Lussuria barely destroyed the box in time (cuz he's awesome like that), though he didn't seem to notice something_ pink _falling out of the obliterated box... which, just so happened to land on Mikami...

So, when the smoke finally cleared, they all stared...

_What the hell...?1_

* * *

**A/N**: Bwahahaha~! *manical laughter* Cliff Hanger!

Lol, but you can probably figure out what'll happen next~ XD

**Spanner**: Ah *reads over part* That's... The so called Te-

**Authoress**: LALALALALALA-! *blocking the 'noise' out* Shush! No giving the plot away~~~! *glaaaare*

**Spanner**: ... *blinks, then sighs* Sure, whatever... sucker? *offers lollipop in hopes of calming teh authoress down*

**Authoress**: Oooh~ Don't mind if I do! XD *takes the sucker and pops it into mouth* Num~~

...Hey, Spanner? Do you have any flavor other than Strawberry? *wonders curiously*

**Spanner**: *blinks and nods* Yeah, but they're still under testing...

I'm trying to come up with some Japanese flavors... *thinks for a minute* Wanna try one?

**Authoress**: Ooh~~~ Yes! *grin* But not yet -I got some s'plainin' t'do!

**Spanner**: *shrugs* Whatever...

**Authoress**: In any case! First thing's first~~ The next chapter will probably be short -but if it is, I shall add an Omake! =D

Of course, the problem is that there'll be a maaaajor spoiler, and I don't know if I wanna spoil things yet...

Hmn... Oh well, if it's short enough I will! XD

Oh, and today's word count!: 4,598 {Now 6,239~~ :hearts:} Words not including the A/N! ^^ I is so proud~ :hearts:

Oh, and since I am 1: too lazy to call someone in, and 2: Spanner's here...

I shall be asking Spanner to do the disclaimer! *holds up disclaimer board for Spanner to read... upsidedown*

**Spanner**: ... You _do_ realize that's upside down, right...?

**Authoress**: *pause* Uh... I knew that! I was just... testing -yeah, _testing-_ to see how ob...servant you are! And... to-to see if you can read upside down!

**Spanner**: *blinks and shrugs* Oh, okay, well... *scans board*

... "Murasaki-chan does _not_ own Katekyo Hitman Reborn, Lady Akira Amano has that Special Privilage -so please do not sue, as the Authoress is having financial problems in addition to-"

**Authoress**: Okay, that's enough! *blushes* Wrong board! Haha... *sweats, and whistles while plotting character death (cough-_Levi_-cough)* In _any_ case, like Span-chan says! I has _no_ ownership rights to KHR! DX

Sadly, _but_ if it _were_ me, this show would OBVIOUSLY be different, in case you couldn't already tell! ^^

Lol, well, that's all! Bye-bi's~ *waves*

Oooh, Spanner~~ mind if I try one of your new flavors? *shiny puppy eyes*

**Spanner**: Uh... *sweats* _sure_... *holds up several wrench-shaped 'pop flavors* Which one do you want?

**Authoress**: Uhm... I'll try... this one! *picks random 'pop*

* * *

**Edit:** Okay! So I FINALLY finished working on chapter three~~ *cheers* And I shall now be moving onto four!

Oh, just so y'all know, I've decided to allow Anonymous Reviews, though if you DO have an account, please use that, since it makes it easier for me to reply to Reviews (which I DO like to do, so)...

In any case, the chapter count is 6,239! almost 2k more than the original! OMJ! XD Lol. Anyways, I hope I can finish the revisions soon, and get the latest chapter up for all you amazing reviewers! XD

Oh, yeah, and those that like to skulk around in teh shadows...

I'M ONTO YOU-! XD

Oh, before I forget POLL WILL CLOSE WHEN I FINISH REVISIONS! So vote, please! X3 You can choose 2, so... yeah. PLEASE VOTE! =3


	5. Future Cloud Guardian? TYL Mika Appears!

**Stuck in the KHR! World**

_A_ Katekyo Hitman Reborn! _Fanfiction_

_by_ **Murasaki Argenteria**

* * *

4. **Future Varia Cloud Guardian? TYL!Mika Appears!**

* * *

As the smoke finally cleared, they all stared...

What the _Fuck/Hell_-?1

"VOOOOOIIIIIIII! WHO THE_ HELL_ ARE YOU, BITCH?1" yelled Squalo -Levi, having returned, blushed a bit when he saw her {the pervert -yes, there will be Levi-bashing}.

"..." Xanxus gave the scene one look and almost immediately turned back to his food, his curiosity hidden by the customary scowl (or, in actuality,_ frown_) he usually wore.

"_Are_...?" the girl blinked, looking mildly surprised as she looked around.

She looked similar to Mika if one looked -or payed any attention; but obviously, the others were too busy wondering where the hell she had come from, who she was, _why_ she was there, and where Mika was (well, a _few_ of them anyways), to bother using logic.

She was at least a head taller than her past self, and, like Squalo's future self, her hair was extremely long (it actually went down to her hips).

It seemed like a rival for Squalo had appeared -and_ that_ was what the silver-haired 'shark' was currently more focused on...

"Ah... was I hit by the Bovino Bazooka?" she murmured with a sigh, "Urgh, what a pain," she grumbled as she ran a hand through her silken onyx hair.

"Oh well, since I'm here anyways," she mumbled, sighing, "_Ne_, Boss~~ Before I go -do _not_ change the Varia uniform in the future, 'kay, please?" she started, catching the scarred man's attention and looking straight into his eyes with a confidence that, frankly? None of them could see _their_ Mika having anyways (but it creeped him out, though he refused to show/admit it).

She had always meant to say something, but then time had passed, and it would have been awkward to bring up how she knew 'certain things' would have happened. Especially after she had finally gotten 'comfortable' around the Assassins, and so in the end, she never _had_ told them that she preferred the old 'colors'.

"Tan and black... and white," she added in afterthought, recalling the exact colors, "Are _not_ good colors for the Varia -not to mention it's freakin' _hard_ to get the stains out!" she said, almost sounding as if she were complaining/whining, though she, of course, was _not._

"Black and silver are best after all~" she informed him, grinning, before she saw Mammon off to the side. "Ah..." she started, as her eyes lit, bringing some of her 'other (past) self' back into view.

"Mammon~~!" she cried, practically snatching him off the raised seat (he refused to use a baby-seat/toddler-chair) he had been about to get off of to hug him -it was as if she had not seen him in_years_...

Though, for all _they_ knew, she probably hadn't.

"I missed you _soo_ much, Mammon!" she cried, huggling the now stiff Arcobaleno -one did not usually hug him so... well, so_ enthusiastically_...

How awkward.

"And, even if you're gone, I _swear!_" she started, sniffling a bit as she held the baby out, and away from her so that she could get a better look at him (which, really, was pretty much useless with the tears forming in her eyes), "I'll make sure you return to us, okay?" She promised, eyes bruning with determination even while they were filling with tears.

"I'll bring you back! So don't worry about it, ok?" she sniffed again, startling the baby with her intense -if not teary eyed- stare.

"Muu... Whatever," he grumbled, a little weirded out, though he didn't show it.

"Just let me go before I charge you" he muttered, though it was a rather feeble threat.

"Haha~" Mika -well, what _most_ could only guess was a grown up Mika from ten-years into the future- laughed, "You never change," she said softly, smiling gently as she gave him one last hug before letting him go and wiping away the tears that threatened to spill over.

Standing to the side, Belphegor spoke at last, as Mammon returned to his arms (Well, at least he was in enough shock that he wouldn't suffocate the baby).

"Ushishishi~ Who _are_ you, peasant?" he asked lightly, though still, rather mockingly. "And where is that peasant that Lussuria picked up?" he continued.

"Ah, Bel~" she smirked slightly, "A wa-r-ning~" she told him, having apparently decided that she didn't need to answer that question if he were stupid enough to _still _not have figured it out.

"Don't you _dare_ try to set up that trap you're planning to try in the next few months," she warned him, "It fails," she told him bluntly.

"And I, can keep very, _very_ long grudges," she hissed softly, her eyes narrowing almost into slits with the look she currently had on her face, as her lips slowly curved into a grin, a demonic light coming into her eyes that sent shivers down the spines of the 'less seasoned' in the room (not to mention a few rooms past, too. After all, one didn't just live with the Varia for so long without picking _something_ up~).

"Shi...shi...?" Bel just tilted his head slightly, still grinning, as he hid the acute discomfort he was feeling -a Prince _never_ showed any sign of weakness, after all!

He still had no idea what this peasant -albeit a sort of_ pretty _peasant (not that he'd admit it)- was talking about, so, he decided to just shrug it all off.

"Whatever~" he said rather nonchalantly before noticing -somewhat irritably- that she was no longer paying attention.

"Lussan!" she exclaimed, giving the Okama a hug that he quite willingly accepted. "It's been so long~!" she cried, hugging the man-woman in an almost bear hug that would've made future-Luss proud -in fact, he _was_.

"Oh, sweetheart~ -It _is_ Mika-chan isn't it?" he paused slightly, before going on at her answer (which was a simple nod), "Sweetheart, you grow up so _beautifully_...!" he cried out, rather teary eyed (which, somehow, was obvious despite the shades that hid his eyes if the 'shoujo sparkles' were anything to go by...) as the rest of the Varia stared.

_This_ was _that_ Mika/Peasant/Trash/Scum?1 they -well, _most_ of them- thought, more than a little shocked at the 'changes'.

I mean, _yeah_ there were similarities if one actually looked -but to change so much in a few seconds...!

...Wait. She had said some things about the _future,_ hadn't she? Did that mean...?

"Mika, what are you wearing?" asked Mammon -being one of the few 'geniuses' who had figured this out some time ago already- after a while, drawing their attention to her clothes.

And, true, at first they had all thought it was the Varia uniform, but now that they took a closer look...

It was similar to the Varia Uniform, but different -of course. It was black, but there were white-silver plates on the shoulders, and it was only a little different from the Varia ensemble -which explained why they had not noticed til now. She and Lussuria released each other from the hug, as she looked over.

"Oh, this? I'm Head of the Varia's Espionage Team in the Millefiore~" she grinned, "I am Captain of the 11th -or 'Viola' Squad- of the Millefiore's Black Spell," she said airily, holding up a hand to wave it off as nothing important -or something huge, if one wanted to think she was being pompous.

It was the glint of silver on her hand that caught their attention, though (not the words that -at the moment- they couldn't really make much sense of)...

It was a _ring_...

On her _engagement_ finger...

"Mika(-chan)...?"started Mammon and Lussuria as one.

"Yeah?" she asked, a bit curious as to not only why they had spoken at the same time, but why they sounded like they were choking a bit as they did.

"W-why is there an _engagement ring_ on your finger...?" asked Lussuria, just as Mammon asked her: "Where did you get that ring?" (since it looked so _expensive_ and all -and we all know how greedy that little baby can be!)

Lussuria frowned, as they both studied the single intricately etched silver band with four square-cut stones set in it. In order by color, it went: a pale indigo/violet color, a darker indigo, blue, and yellow/gold. On her other hand, though, he noticed, was a pale purple stone set on a silver band with what looked like wings carved on it -this made him frown more, though Mammon was busy with studying the slim band on her left ring finger, seeing as it looked more expensive, despite the smaller stones (although, in this case the quantity would probably make up for quality, though they _were_pretty high quality stones from what he could tell).

"Oh, this?" she started, "It's-" she went on, but, before she could finish, there was another 'poof' of (pink) smoke, and the Mika from_ their_ time was back.

"O-Ow..." she winced, getting up since she seemed to have fallen, "What happened...?" she muttered, rubbing her head with one hand, something -or _things_, really- clenched in her other fist.

"Ushishishi... The Peasant has some nerve trying to tell the Prince what to do~" Bel started, causing her to freeze...

Oh, _crap_... Was she back in her time already...? she gulped...

Just then, the rest of the Varia realized something -something _crucial..._

The future Mika had been speaking to them in perfect _Italian_...

* * *

After a while (once Lussuria and Mammon convinced Bel that no, he could _not_ attack Mika, and that if he tried, both their retribution would be upon him, and anyone else that tried, as Mika held behind Lussuria {since he was_ obviously _the better meat-shield}), they got down to business...

That is: Questioning 'Mika'.

But, first thing, first, when they started questioning her, what Lussuria noticed, was that she was holding _something_ in one of her hands.

"Ne, Mika-chan~ What are you holding?" asked Lussuria curiously -had she been given something from the _future_...? the Muay-Thai user wondered.

_That_ question was what had kept them all from unveiling the cascade of 'inquiries' that would have, no doubt, drowned her -or, in _this_ case, _deafened_ her...

"Th-This...?" Mika started, looking hesitant for half a second, before she seemed to steel herself and make up her mind, holding her hand out for them to see the contents.

Rings -they were _rings_, not unlike the ones Future Mika had been wearing on her engagement finger, only there were four, one ring for each stone (although there was one other thing she'd gotten from the future, though she couldn't _open_ it yet and so it was laying uselessly in her bag).

Silence.

"All you got from the future... were _those fucking _RINGS?1 VOOOOIIIIII-! STOP SHITTIN' ME, YOU LITTLE BI-" Squalo had started, before Xanxus threw a shot-glass at him to shut him up.

("VOOOOIIII!" "Shut up, trash!")

Mika shrunk slightly, flinching a bit at the loudness, "W-Well... He said... that... it was... a D-Dying... Will... No, th-that _they_'re," she corrected herself, "Dying Will Flame Rings," she said, willing herself not to stuttered though that failed as her nerves got the best of her. "L-Like the... Vongola... Rings... o-only they're... a bit... weaker," she said, adding a few things from what she knew to what she had actually been _told_ (actually, she already knew everything she'd been told, but... better to keep the 'white lies' to a minimum, right?).

"The Vongola Rings... th-they're... They're... _Special_...

"They are... 'Over-A' or... 'S' Rank... Rings," she said, almost mumbling she was becoming so quiet (though it would've _helped_ if they weren't _staring _so intensely at her).

"Th-These are just... 'A'... Rank Rings," she added, "A-And -they're m-mine...!" she told them, looking a bit unsure of saying this out loud. After all, they were _assassins... _Would they find it offensive? she wondered a bit worriedly.

"I-I'm not allowed... to give them to anyone else..." her tried to explain, voice becoming softer until it was a whisper...

Lussuria gave her a sympathetic look, understanding (clearly). for once, that she was a bit scared of asserting herself (though his mental reason as for why was a bit off, though he _did_ get the assassins part right) and pat her back gently, "Darling, _no _one will take them from you, Promise~" he said smiling at her, before glaring in Bel's direction, since he was the only one who would probably try to steal them later because they were 'pre -er... 'shiny'.

Bel 'tch'ed, and scowled back. As if he'd want just _A _class Rings if there were better like she'd said! Though if she was lying...

Eventually, everyone stopped being so shocked, and their minds clicked at a rather _obvious_ fact they had overlooked -something that she should _not_ have known...

"Trash... Why do you know about the _Vongola Rings_...!" 'asked' {*cough*_demanded_*cough*} Xanxus gruffly, practically glaring at her.

She squeaked, "I-I... I was... told," she said -half lie, since she had already known about it even _before_she had been told. "J-Just like... the _Arcobaleno Pacifiers_..." she said, glancing a bit uneasily towards Mammon, who seemed to contemplate this, frowning.

She gulped, fidgeting a bit -unnerved by the stares (and Xanxus' glare) for the most part.

"I- He said I was something called a... uhm..." she wracked her brain, trying to remember the word she had been told was the 'title' for Multi-flame users...

"It was... U-Utente... di Multi... Fiamme...?" she frowned, "Y-Yeah... I... I _think_ that's what it was..." she said -and rather uneasily.

Silence met that answer. A _Multi-Flame_ User...?

"Oh, but... I-I'm not the only one!" she said, hoping they wouldn't single her out (like they haven't already) due to that or treat her _too_ 'special' -after all, 'special' in the Varia was definitely different from a normal person's definition of the word.

"X-Xanxus-s -I mean, S-Signore... Xanxus...(?) has b-both the, uhm... 'il Fiamme Cielo' and... 'il Fiamme di Tempesta'," she said, relieved that she had finally managed to get it right.

Well, she was learning... right?

Xanxus decided not to question how she knew these things -she'd probably got all the information from whatever person had been explaining about the flames...

But he had Storm _and_ Sky flames... Hmn...

"VOOIIIIII! IF YOU KNOW THAT, THEN YOU KNOW WHAT FLAMES WE HAVE!" exclaimed Squalo, unable to stay silent for another second, and causing more than one person in the room to wince at the loudness -though Xanxus just threw another shot-glass at the silver haired shark... Again.

"_Shut up, Scum-!_" he growled.

Where the _hell_ did he keep getting those glasses anyways...? Mika wondered absently as she decided that it would be best for all of them if she just answered.

"Y-Yeah..." she answered softly, rubbing her poor ears (they were _still_ ringing with the Swordsman's yell).

"S-Squalo-san, you have... il... Fiamme... di Piogga," she said, making him smirk proudly, feeling smug as he did.

Of _course_ he had Rain flames! He was going to be the _Rain Guardian_ after all!

"Oooh~ Darling, what about us~? Tell the rest of us what we have~!" exclaimed Lussuria, sparkling, as wiggled a bit in excitement.

She nodded, unphased by that display, at least."Uhm, okay. Luss-nee-san, you have... 'il Fiamme di Sereno'," she said, causing the man to squeal and 'wiggle' some more as she continued. "M-Mammon has... 'il Fiamme Nebbia'," she said, as Mammon nodded. That, he had already known.

"B-Bel...phegor... Principe... You have 'il Fiamme di Tempesta'," she told him, causing him to 'laugh', "And... Levi-jii-san..." she said, somehow giving said man the feeling that she was mocking him, though he had no idea what the 'jii-san' meant (old man), "Y-you have... 'il Fiamme...' Uhm... 'i-il Fiamme... Fulmine'! Yes, I-I think he said that the Thunder/Lighting Flame was Fulmine..." she said.

Levi felt pride in that -he _was_ the one that was best for the title of Thunder Guardian after all-! He thought, unable to help from squealing and grinning widely on the inside, though he didn't show it.

A slight shiver went through the room at that moment for some 'unknown' reason...

"And? What about _you_, Mika-chan~? !" asked Lussuria, as Mammon looked thoughtful...

"Yes, what _are_ your flames, Mika? I remember you saying you had several..." he trialed off. "And if those rings are anything to judge by, I'd say you have three or four Flame types," he said, not quite sure yet whether the two purples were the same and just different in quality or not -but, no. She had said they were 'A' Class so they couldn't be weaker, hm...

Silence met that question, as the other members pondered this as well.

What _were_ her flames...?

"U-Uhm, well... I-I have..." she started, "He said I have... i-il Fiamma di Piogga... Nebbia... Nuvola... a-and... Sereno," she said, listing off the Rain, Mist, Cloud, _and_ Sun flames.

Silence.

"Oh..._ my_, Mika-chan! We have the same flame~!" squealed Lussuria, "Ooh~ I feel so _happy_ for some reason~!" he exclaimed, wiggling around a little before he spun over to her and gave her a great big hug.

"And _Cloud_ Flame!" he continued on, "It's _perfect!_ What with you staying in the Official Cloud Guardian's room~ Boss~~ We should make Mika-chan our Cloud Guardian!" he squealed, momentarily forgetting just what that would mean (since she would have to become an assassin) he was so happy.

Xanxus scowled at that._ Fuck_ no! He already had _plans_ for the position of Cloud -and Gola Mosca...

He _had_ to have Gola Mosca as the Cloud Guardian or his plan wouldn't work.

"No," he said simply, before thinking of something and smirking, "But it _does_ seems that the shark-scum has someone to 'play' with now," he said, grinning ferally and ignoring the scowl and glare he received from said 'Shark-Scum'.

But, since it seemed that she knew some things now... Maybe it wouldn't be so bad to keep her around... he thought absently, downing yet another glass of high class liquor.

It would be useful to have someone with multiple flames...

Once she was_ trained_, that is, he added in afterthought.

Yes, the future her has seemed rather strong... And once he was done with _Gola Mosca_...

Well, maybe he would let her be the Cloud Guardian after all...

_Maybe_...

* * *

After that trial was over, Mika was relieved to find that everyone was too preoccupied to remember her...

Well, for a _while_, anyways -Lussuria had started screeching loudly (no one could really tell what he had been saying other than something about 'late' and 'work' he was so hysterical) when he realized that he was going to miss his... ah... _appointment_... for 'work', and had run off, though not before giving Mika a quick peck on the cheek and promising again to go 'shopping' (luckily not _dress-_shopping) with her later on when he wasn't so 'busy'.

Who knew there was anyone other than Squalo who could be so_ loud_...? she had mused, though wincing, as she had rubbed the ear that had been closest to the outburst, and watched Lussuria leave, waving slightly after the (_extremely_) speedy figure. (He was already at the end of the very, _very_long hall from the Varia's Core Members' 'Dining/Meeting Room' and when she check, he was already outside, as well.)

Meanwhile, Mammon had been quietly discussing some things with Xanxus off to the side (with Levi grovelling nearby as always), while Bel disappeared at the first mention of 'work', deciding that he could get/play with Mammon later.

What none of them knew, though, was that what Xanxus was discussing with Mammon about was_Mika_ -and how she would best be trained.

He wanted Mammon to teach the girl how to use her Mist flame (luckily, Squalo wasn't there either, since, apparently, he had a 'mission' to do as well, or he'd have given everything away at once)...

Luckily for them, though, Mika wasn't present, and those three (Xanxus, Mammon, and Levi) were the only ones still in the Dining Hall -well, at least until Xanxus finally got annoyed and sent Levi off to fetch him a non-existant bottle of wine from the cellar.

Somehow, Mikami had had a sneaking suspicion that the 'Varia Arc' would occur soon, and had decided to retreat into her own room since she didn't want to be caught unawares by Bel -and there were a few things she wanted to do as well...

Besides, she wanted to see if she could light any of the rings yet by herself_ without_ any interruptions (though she doubted that would last too long).

* * *

Eventually, Xanxus and Mammon had come to a form of agreement after a 'minor' argument of sorts (Lussuria would be rather upset when he found out that the Dining table would need to be replaced..._Again_)...

Mammon would teach the girl in return for more high-paying missions, and Xanxus would also be paying him the amount of an 'A' rank mission since he would be making the money by himself, and he did 'owe' his master after all -and who knew if this was what he was supposed to be doing anyways?

Xanxus was also going to have Lussuria teach the girl to use her Sun flames, and Squalo -when he got back- would be in charge of teaching her to use her Rain flames.

But _Mammon_ would have to teach her how to utilize and control her flames -as well as her Cloud flames, since Gola Mosca was a machine, and wouldn't be able to _teach_ her anything -it (technically) didn't really use Flames, after all.

Once that discussion had been over, though, Mammon left to find the girl, seeing as she had not waited for him (not that he had expected her to) -and neither had Bel, it would seem.

He'd just charge the self-titled Genius Prince for that later, he decided, in a rather good mood for the moment, what with the prospect of making more money...

He eventually found her in her room, giggling, with headphones covering her ears, while using a laptop (hers if the faded -but girly- stickers were anything to go by) that she had gotten from who-knows-where.

Well, not like Mammon cared, really -though he_ was_ a tad bit curious as to what had her in an almost face-splitting grin that reached pretty much from ear to ear (especially when she seemed so shy and quiet normally). {Oh, how wrong he is... how _wrong_ he is... But he'll learn... they'll _all_ learn... *cackles madly* Ahem-! Moving on...}

She didn't seem to notice him (of course not) though she lay on the bed, with the laptop plugged into the wall, and seeming to be either watching or reading something on the screen.

He floated over to her shoulder to see...

"Muu... What the heck is that...?" he asked, startling her since he had appeared so suddenly and so_close_. (_Darned Illusionists..._ she grumbled mentally once she had recovered.)

"ahk-!" she yelped, slipping slightly and somehow falling off the bed, though she had managed to save the laptop. The headphones had slipped, though, and were now digging rather _uncomfortably_ into her neck.

"M-Mammon-san...!" she gasped, accidentally lapsing into Japanese from shock {And just to clear this up, no, she's _not_ Japanese}.

"W-What...?" she stared, staring at the floating infant.

Mammon said nothing for a moment, as he stared, twitching under his hood at the girl.

_This girl..._ It seemed that he was going to have his work cut out for him after all...

Really, he should've charged the Boss more, he thought belated, sighing.

* * *

**A/N**: Yes~~! Things are going as planned...! XD

Sorta... XP It's still short though, see? Word Count: 3,360 {Now 4,437} Words. And, as always, not including the A/N. =D

**Spanner**: Really? It seemed fine to me...

By the way, are you going to test that? *waves to the loli still in hand*

**Authoress**: Hmn? Oh, yeah! Yeah, but since this is shorter it means I have to do that Omake! DXD

I'm kinda happy and not so happy about that, cuz it means I actually have to do more work. =P

That, and it kinda spoils things a little...

Oh well! XD As you can probably tell, this is right before the Varia Arc~ :hearts:

And -omg! TYL!Mika appears! XD Don't worry, there'll be some differences shown, and all shall be explained! XD

Including why Xanxus would be willing to pay Mammon to teach Mika -since he is the only one teh Boss-man would have to pay. =D

Lol! Oh, better eat this now! *peels plastic wrappy thing off, and pops it into mouth* Hmn...

Kuhkuhnutsh fwavar! (Coconut Flavor!) *pulls pop out* I have no idea why Coconut flavor would be Japanese... but, oh well! *noms on sucker happily*

**Spanner**: Coconut...? *confused*

No... that's supposed to be Lycee (lee-chii) flavor...

Hmn... *starts calculating* Guess I better try that recipe again...

**Authoress**: Eh? But... I _like_ Coconut flavor! *pouts, but is ignored; sighs*

Oh well, since Span-chan is busy, today's Guest...

Mammon-chan! Also known as the Arcobaleno Viper~~!

**Mammon**/**Viper**: ... Muu... It's _just_ Mammon now... *grumbles* But I'm here, since you payed me to be...

**Authoress**: Yup! *grins* I just got my allowance, and I spent it aaaaall on you! So~~

Disclaimer please! XD

**Mammon**/**Viper**: *sighs* I guess I'll have to, huh? Muu... How troublesome...

"Murasaki KuroNeko Rei does _not_ own KHR!, Akira Amano does. So don't sue." -because she just spent all of her money to pay me to come here

**Authoress**: Yup! XD Oh, and just to explain the character thingie in the 'Characters' thing.

I figured Mammon-chan *hugs Mammon like Bel usually does* would be pretty important, seeing as Mikami-chan is in his care. Also, for the other person, Spanner-

**Spanner**: Yes? *pulls headphones off, blinking*

**Authoress**: It's okay Spanner, nothing important *speaks hastily*

**Spanner**: *shrugs* Okay *puts headphones back on and continued to type away at the computer for a 'Lycee' flavor sucker formula/recipe*

**Authoress**: In any case, I can't tell Span-chan yet, but he's going to be paired with Mika-chan~

Which explains why she's going to be a spy in the future -and yes! XD She will be the Mare Cloud Guardian! ...well, the _fake_, anyways. =D I checked on Reborn! Wiki, and it showed that no one had the Fake Cloud Ring, so I figured, why not? XD

It ties in _perfectly_ for what I'm planning! XD Originally I was just going to have her be a Black Spell Captain anyways -as for why she is one, again, it'll be explained later.

Now, as for why I am spouting these supposed 'spoilers' it's because it'll be shown in the Omake that I promised if this was shorter than the other chapter. And, just so you know, it takes place right after TYL!Mika goes back to the Future XD

So, on that note...

Matta ne~~! *waves*

* * *

**O-ma-ke!**:

The soft pink-ish white cloud of smoke was what alerted him to the fact that Mika -_his_ Mika- had returned.

"Welcome back," said the blonde mechanic, the usual wrench-shaped sucker in his mouth, as he smiled a bit at his lover.

The Future Mika -or, rather, the Mika of _now_ (the Future)- smiled back.

"Ah, Span-chan~" she hugged him, ignore the fact that he was still sitting cross-legged on the floor in his jumpsuit, as she hugged him around the neck.

"Missed. You~" she said, kissing his cheek with a grin. He smiled, and kissed her back (on the cheek of course).

It had taken them both a while just to get used to the chaste kisses and not blush (though Spanner had been more startled the first time it had happened, while Mika had turned a -rather _cute_, now that he thought of it- tomato red).

He chuckled a bit, "It's only been five minutes," he pointed, though he had missed her as well (seeing the younger Mika and not being able to tell her anything had been a little hard, but, he had -_somehow_- endured).

It was kind of odd -not that they were working together.

Of course, Spanner knew that she wasn't really from the Giglio Nero -and so had Aria- but no one else knew about it, not even Gamma or the other higher ups.

Years ago, when he had just been a new techie fresh out of college that had joined the Giglio Nero, there had been another who had joined around the same time -well, _almost_.

Actually, it was about half a year after, about the time that he had finally gotten used to life in the 'Mafia' and knew what was normal and what wasn't -and she most _definitely_ had not been.

Apparently she had been 'transfered' over from the Varia (who he would soon learn wasn't part of the Giglio Nero, but the Vongola). Of course, it had been while Aria-san had been alive at the time too, and she had also been the one who had asked him to join (because of his mechanical skills, of course).

Though, actually, now that he thought about it, she was a year older than him too...

Meh, oh well, it didn't matter, he thought absently as he came back to the real world to smile at Mika.

"So, how did it go?" he asked, holding out one of his wrench shaped suckers to her.

"Mn... Well, let's just say it was a bit... _surprising_ and nostalgic," she said dryly, accepting the sweet.

"Thanks," she murmured, unwrapping it and putting it in her mouth, before handing the waste to his Mini-Mosca, who accepted it and went into reverse, tossing it into a nearby trashcan.

"Hmn," he murmured, "You know, you were pretty cute ten years ago," he said absently, back to typing away at the laptop he had been working with before the Past Mika had appeared.

Mika smiled, "Aw, thanks~" she said, "But should I take it as a compliment~? Or should I think that it means you don't think I'm cute _now_?" she asked teasingly.

He couldn't help the smile that crossed his face -she really hadn't changed much from the Mika he had known... Well, if you didn't count how painfully _shy_ she had been around 'strangers'...

"Both, I suppose -you're _not_ cute," he said after a moment's pause, pulling her into his lap even as he pushed the laptop to the side, when she began to release her hug and to protest.

He shut her up with a chase kiss on the lips, though -ah, _There_ was that beautiful shade of pink that was just so becoming on her...

"You're _beautiful_," he murmured into her ear.

"Spanner!" she gasped, feeling the warm air across her nape and shivering a bit -it was sort of ticklish...

He couldn't help the grin (nope, not at all)...

She had been rather (_really_) shy when he had first met her, though. Aria had asked him to show her around, seeing as everyone else had been busy that day -and he had been the closest person as well.

He had been the one to make the ring she was wearing now, too (the one the Varia had asked about). Seeing as it would probably be less troublesome for her if it were just _one_ ring, rather than four.

He had remade the four rings, actually, meticulously cutting the 'A' class stones he had gotten in half, before re-working them. She had still had the original rings, though, of course (he had somehow managed to obtain stones just like them). And he had given her the finished product that she now wore.

Actually, the ones he had given the past her, were the original ones. He had made two versions of the rings -both for her, of course, since he didn't use the Flames often. Plus, it really wasn't his (Flame) type anyways.

He probably could, but he had never bothered to even try to call up his own Dying Will Flames.

He smiled at the pout he had received, and chuckled, "So, what now?" he asked in response to the short silence.

She smiled, but the evil look in her eye made him shiver -she could still scare him sometimes. (The first time had been an 'accident', and it had actually scarred his mind... He had never been the same since...)

"Now~?" she purred (well, _almost_, anyways), "_Now_, I go see 'Shoichi'," she said, though, typically, she called him "Sho-chan" along with Byakuran and his girlfriend, "and tell him that it was a 'success'," she continued, a smile plastered to her annoyed face as she got up.

Spanner released her a little reluctantly, though he knew better than to step between her and a 'target'.

He _did_ feel bad for Shoichi, though. She was probably going to ambush him, and give him a 'piece of her mind' for using her as a 'test subject'...

Spanner sighed, "Alright, just please don't hurt our 2nd Squad leader too much, Miss 11th Squad leader~" he said, teasing her a little in hopes of getting her to lighten up enough to not scar the poor red-head.

She just gave him a mischievous grin, "Oh, I won't~" she sang, as she rather cheerfully (_too _cheerfully, once he gave it some thought) walked out of the room.

The blond mechanic sighed. Perhaps he should give Shoichi a warning...? he pondered for half a second, before shaking his head and dismissing the thought. Nah, it was his own fault -besides, he figured he might as _well _let her have a bit of 'fun'...

They had been so busy lately... And he _knew_ she was rather stressed -they _all_ were. Besides, it would probably be too late by the time he called him up anyways, that is... _If_ Shoichi hadn't lost his cell under that mess of a workspace again.

A scream split the air -ah, she was already there, he thought, a smile lifting the corners of his mouth as he pulled out another sucker.

Oh well, too late either way. Shoichi needed to relax a bit more anyways, though, he thought absently, putting the headphones back on so he wouldn't have to hear the yelling (and screaming, in Shoichi's case) as well as the argument that was bound to ensue.

Hell hath no fury indeed...

But, she was _his_ hellion... All his~~ he thought, smiling a little as he turned his attention back to the laptop -Shoichi could call if he needed help...

Either him or someone else in the Merone Base.

He smiled again, the customary wrench shaped sucker in his mouth as he typed away, unaware of the phone ringing off the hook on the table behind him...

Ah, the sweet sound of music. He had a feeling he was beginning to understand why Shoichi felt the need to blast his eardrums apart with the music he listened to so loudly, as well as the headphones he was rarely seen without...

~**_Essere Proseguito _**(_To Be Continued_)**_..._**


	6. Mika's Resolution! Bel Gets Addicted To

**Stuck in the KHR! World**

_A_ Katekyo Hitman Reborn! _Fanfiction_

_by_ **Murasaki Argenteria**

* * *

5. **Mika's Resolution! Bel gets addicted to Games...?**

* * *

So she had been a_ little_ preoccupied...

Okay, _more_ than a little when Mammon appeared -but she couldn't help it! She was an Otaku (and a fangirl if she refused to admit it since it would mean that she was _that_ much closer to becoming a 'Mary-Sue'), and she needed her daily Anime/Manga 'dosage'.

Luckily, she had been on an 'okay' page that wasn't Yaoi -in fact, she had recently been reading a manga called 'Arago'. The beginning had been rather surprising, but it was good so far.

Oh, and it took place in_ England_ of all places...

* * *

Mammon sighed, "Get up, Mika," he ordered, calling her by the nickname since Lussuria called her that, and he really couldn't be bothered to remember the rest of her name (and nicknames -or was it the other way around...?).

"Xanxus told me to train you in how to use your flames," he said monotonously, sounding rather bored.

"Eh?" she blinked, still staring at him from upside-down where she had fallen off of the bed to.

Although, she _still _couldn't see Mammon's face... _Damn._

Oh well, she thought, wincing slightly as she got up, pulling the headphones off, and putting them to the side as she somehow managed to straighten herself without tangling herself in that mess of wires...

"Oh, oka-" she started before realizing _exactly_ what the infant had said.

"Wait,_ what?_" she asked, staring back at Mammon in shock.

He sighed again -she was really_ slow _sometimes, wasn't she...? he thought, grumbling mentally before sighing.

"Come on," he said as he floated towards the door.

He wasn't really giving her a _choice_, though... Now _was _he?

"Eh... Eh~! W-Wait, Mammon-!" she exclaimed -not loudly enough to rival _Squalo_ (obviously), but loud enough to travel into the hall a little, as she tripped over her bed, somehow managing to put the laptop on standby before putting it away, and adjusting the strap of the messenger bag she had taken to wearing everywhere (except in her own room, of course -what was the point?), before running after the floating Arcobaleno.

She caught him just in time to see him disappear into his own room.

Well, he said to follow him... _Right?_ she thought, as she tentatively opened the door, taking a peek in before walking in.

"Hurry up," he called from somewhere to her right when she had stopped to stare at the room.

Like her own room, it was neutral colors, though it had more of an indigo scheme to it rather than grey.

Well, the_ walls_ were grey...

It seemed larger than it really was, though, and was (not quite surprisingly) rather neat.

She wondered if it was an illusion or if Mammon really preferred the room like that.

The carpets were a dark purple, but plush like Bel's; His bed was a regular sized bed, though (probably cuz he didn't need as much space, she figured), and lay a little to the right of center at the wall to her right (from the door) with dark purple/indigo sheets that had gold and silver embroidery at the edges, while the rest of the room showed some traces of dark green -probably a show of his love for money.

_Or_ in respect to Fantasma, who was usually either a frog or a snake-thing that allowed Mammon to fly/float...

Nah, it was probably money.

"Ah, h-hai!" she scrambled to follow after the baby as he seemed to walk right through the wall to the other side. Carefully -_just_ in case- she tried touching the section of wall, feeling the smooth stone until she touched something shouldn't be there -a door hidden by illusion? she wondered, twisting what felt like a knob to see if it worked...

The illusion dispelled itself.

"Muu... it took you long enough," muttered the Arcobaleno irritably as he float in the center of the room.

"Eheh... heh..." she grinned nervously at the Arcobaleno. "S-So... I'm... supposed to learn to use... my flame from you...?" she asked.

How did Xanxus know about the -other (sky)- Dying Will Flames anyways...?

Oh well, better not to think too much into it, she thought, shaking her head clear of the useless thoughts.

"Muu... It can't be helped, since I'm being payed for it after all," he sighed, "Now, take out the rings and put them on -from what I can tell (guess), it acts like the Pacifier as an amplifier for the Flames," he said, revealing the Pacifier since it seemed like she already knew about it anyways.

"O-oh, okay," she said, following the infant's instructions meekly as she pulled said rings out.

She put them on her right, dominant hand. And, in order from index finger to ring finger: Rain, Mist and Cloud, then Sun.

"N-Now what?" she asked, deciding to let him do his job and not reveal that she already knew she needed some form of determination -though she had failed to try it yet.

She had been... _preoccupied_... after all...

* * *

Mammon sighed, "Try something else," he said at last.

They had been 'working' for little over and hour -and the best she seemed to be able to do was a measly _slip_ of a flame (it was more of a wisp, though, really), that could hardly outlast a _candle_.

Well, it wasn't really _her_ fault since she seemed rather distracted -perhaps it would be best if he just found out what was wrong and got her to actually _concentrate_...

"...Mika!" he snapped crossly when he found his new pupil's attention had wandered again.

"Hai! S-sorry..." she said, blushing a bit with embarrassment.

Mammon sighed, "Alright, what's distracting you," he asked -or, rather, _demanded_- settling down onto the table, in order to watch the girl.

"I-I'm sorry, I keep... I keep getting distracted-"

"Yes, I_ know_," he cut in a bit irritably before she went blathering on about something he didn't care about, "But _what_ is distracting you?" he asked, voice strained with the forced patience.

"Uhm..." her eyes wandered over to the bookshelves near the door (the room seemed to be a private library)...

"I-Is that... Mercedes Lackey's Collegium Series...?"

Mammon twitched with irritation -_that_ was what was had been keeping her from improving for the _last hour..._?1

* * *

Mammon winced slightly as the girl before him squealed with joy.

"_I did it-!_ Mammon, look! I did it!" she exclaimed excitedly, seeing the flames that had flared from the rings -not quite mixing, but not really seperate, either.

He grumbled sightly, "_Great_," he rolled his eyes (from under the hood) sarcastically. It had taken her the better half of another hour to get how to call the flames up -even with the Rings acting as medium.

"Now learn how to control the flames _seperately_," he told her.

Needless to say, she was rather put out at the lack of enthusiasm at her (minor) success...

After Mammon had told her that _no,_ the books on the shelf were_ not_ whoever-she'd-been-talking-about's "Collegium" Series, he had covered it with an illusion -or undone it (she wasn't sure which it was, as she still couldn't really tell illusions from reality at the moment)- before forcing her to concentrate, despite her disappointment.

Well, of course, after that, she _had_ managed to come up with a few resolutions -even _if_ they weren't the best...

But, it would do.

Of course, she didn't mention that most of the resolutions were Otaku-related -_or_ that one of them was actually to get a certain Child-sized tutor together with a certain blonde homicidal Prince in the near (or far -_very_ far off-) future...

Ve, she thought sweating slightly, it would probably be better if she didn't.

A groan was the only reply he recieved as she started to concentrate again -this time, on controlling her flames seperately...

_Dang_, it was harder than lighting all of them at once...

_Ve..._

* * *

Another three hours or so later (Mika couldn't really tell, though, as the room's lighting never seemed to change), she managed to control them separately -though only a few at a time, rather than one.

Apparently she had been concentrating on keeping each ring_ extinguished_, rather than just concentrating on _lighting_ just one or two rings at a time...

Mammon sighed, "Alright, that's enough for now," he said, getting up from the place he had been sitting and watching the girl work up a sweat with her intense concentration.

"You're dismissed for now -and _don't_ tell Bel about the room," he added, as she froze.

"E-eh?" she blinked, turning back and sweating a bit as she tried to look innocent and somewhat confused, as she held the door knob that had suddenly reappeared with the rest of the room.

"That Self-dubbed Prince is too much trouble to deal with -just don't tell anyone," he told her. "Of course, that goes for everyone else, too," he added after a while.

Oh, so_ that_ was it! she'd thought, nodding and turning so he wouldn't see her relieved expression -it wasn't because he could read her mind! Haha.

She was so silly! Of _course _he couldn't! Reborn only guessed, and he got things wrong sometimes too...!

Even _if_ it was quite rarely...

* * *

After leaving Mammon's room, she headed back towards her own -she had an hour to herself before Lussuria reappeared (or so the man had promised, and he_ did_ seem to be able to make good on _most_of them in any case).

Squalo still wasn't back, and she had a feeling her suspicion would only too soon be proved correct...

She took the time to take a shower, though, and get changed -this time, wearing the newly washed Varia Uniform she had been given (the one from before was in the wash, while this one was a spare until Lussuria could take her shopping for things her her size -most of the clothes were either 'unsuitable' for her, or they were too big with her new -unfortunately, shorter, though- small size).

Thank whatever deities existed in this (and her) world she didn't have to wear that silly, pale pink lacey outfit Lussuria had been planning to make her wear that morning!

He had taken one look at her while holding the clothes out (as if to envision her in it -which he probably_ had_ been), and had tossed it to the side.

Pink didn't really suit her, he had decided, before throwing a few more sets of clothes (of a few various colors and shades) out of the wardrobe, and pulling out a simple set of casual clothes that consisted of:

A pale blue-grey t-shirt and a white and black skater-type hoodie that went with it (since it was fall and the weather was already getting colder), and a pair of dark, denim blue jeans -he let her pick out her own footwear, though, which had consisted of a plain white pair of socks and sneakers that could be worn without the laces (again, where he got all this clothes -and why he even had them in the _first_place... She had _no_ idea).

There were still skirts in the closet, of course, but Lussuria had known it would be impractical (considering all the homicidal/violent people in the castle) if she needed to run, and had, rather disappointedly, chosen that outfit, since it matched her bag and collar, He wasn't sure whether it came off or not, and didn't bother to ask since it looked good on her anyways.

He figured she might like to wear them later on, though, when someplace less dangerous -of course, he_ still_ didn't know she hated skirts, and, most probably, would likely try to force her into one sooner or later.

And, depending on her mood (if she wasn't PMSing or was in an indulging mood), she might accept it grudgingly... Or try to kill the effeminate male assassin.

_If_ she was in a somewhat good mood, anyways.

Her sadism could probably rival all the Varia combined -not to mention that she wasn't squeamish (for the most part) unlike most girls.

Her maturity and sanity on the other hand...

Well, _that_ couldn't be accounted for -she _had_ always been a little on the less sane side of the sanity-spectrum...

She was smart, though, and had been able to hide it quite well so far.

Now, though, she had another... oh... forty-five minutes or so before Lussuria supposedly returned. So, what was a bored, young adolescent girl to do now...?

Spying her bag laying half open on the bed (where she had tossed it earlier), a slow, mischievous smile made its way onto her face...

* * *

Belphegor -also known as 'Prince the Ripper' and, quite literally in most cases a 'Bloody Genius' and a Prince- was bored. And, having been unable to find the 'Fiamma Nebbia' using Arcobaleno, had decided to see what the 'Peasant' was up to. After all, she was new, he was bored, and he figured she might be able to entertain him for a bit (and maybe he could get some information out of her as to where she had gotten those Black Iron 'Kunai' as she had called them)...

So, he decided that the best thing to do was to sneak into her room -one honestly couldn't figure out_why _the Prince knew how to pick a lock, or even _had_ lock-picking skills, though...

But he did, so _there_. Besides, it was a _perfectly_ Princely ability...

When _he_ used it, anyways -after all, a Prince needed to be able to save himself if someone attempted to kidnap him... Right? Right.

But, imagine his surprise, when he found her furiously pressing buttons and concentrating on some device in her hands, muttering to herself.

"No-! Nononono-! Don't use_ that_ one! Use the Water type -gah!" she exclaimed so suddenly as he snuck closer that he'd thought she had noticed him.

But apparently she didn't, as she continued to play (quite tempted to smash the hand-held machine, by the way) -back facing him, as she sat on the queen-sized bed...

* * *

"Ushishishi~" the familiar laugh made her freeze, all thoughts of the Game in her hands (A Pokemon DS game, sadly) forgotten.

She gulped, turning slowly, "B-Bel...phegor... Principe..." she swallowed, "W-What are you doing here...?" she cursed herself -once again- mentally for showing so much weakness before the sadistically (and most _definitely_ insanely...) Homicidal Prince.

"Ushishishi~~ The Prince is _bored_~" he purred (almost), absently playing with a knife -_her kunai_, she noticed,- but pushed her thoughts aside.

There were more important matters at hand here-! (I.e. the plainly _HOMICIDAL PRINCE _IN HER ROOM!)

"O-oh..." she swallowed again, "W-q a bit nell then... is there... anything you'd like to do in particular...?" she asked rather nervously.

He seemed to think about this, studying the slight twitch of her fingers as he did so, watching, as she tried to -discreetly- save the game, in case Bel got bored and tried to take her game/DS... Which, of course, he _did._

"Oh~ What's this~~?" he said out loud, snatching the silver DS lite from her hands.

"H-Hey!" she protested -rather _weakly_, might I add.

"Ushishi~ Well? What is it?" he asked again (rather _pleasantly_, might he add), holding the electronic by the edge, as he studied the screen.

On one screen, there was some odd looking creature, while the back of another one faced him in the same top screen; in the second, were what seemed to be options...

'Fight', 'Flee', 'Items', and 'Pokemon'...

Hmn, was that was those odd creatures were called? he wondered absently.

"_Well?_" he said again, grinning the grin of his, as he chuckled slightly.

"Uhm, w-well that's... my DS..." she said, before babbling on, "I-I was playing a Pokemon game -P-Pokemon stands for Pocket Monsters. A-And it's set in a world where humans partner up with -and use- Pokemon to train and become s-stronger..." she trailed off.

"I-It's a Game... sort of like... like a _Roleplay_... only... only it's a game..." she trailed off rather lamely, unable to explain it very well as she wrung her hands a bit worriedly -he wasn't going to take it and_break_ it now... Was he?

She wouldn't put it past him, though (she could see him breaking it -and just out of _boredom_, too), she thought sort of nervously -it was rather annoying how she could be so calculating and... well, like herself when she was alone, but such a nervous wreck around others... (At least _physically, _anyways.)

Well, in the case of people that she didn't know -or hadn't met...

But, in this case, she had a feeling it was her body's automatic reply to the possible threat of pain -or_death_...

She was brought back to the 'real' world, though, when Bel laughed again.

"Ushishishi~ _Teach me_, Peasant~" he ordered the girl. _What?_ He was bored!

"E-Eh?" she blinked, as he held the machine out to her, dangling it before her with two slim fingers (which, for _some _reason reminded her if L/Lawliet from Death Note).

"It seems interesting, so, though the Prince is still a Prince~ He will allow this commoner to teach him how to play these... _Peasant_... games," he declared.

She blinked, so... What? Was he was saying that the game was 'worthy' for him to play even though he was a Prince...?

"O-Okay..." she said, still a little surprised, even as she pulled out a Black DS from her bag -_yes_, she had two... The older Silver DS lite she had pulled out earlier, and the newer Black one she had only just taken out.

Actually, _technically_ her first had been the Black one, though it had broken (No thanks to her idiotic little brother, of course), and she had gotten it replaced with the Silver one -now she had _another_ black one (since her brother had finally gotten good on his word and had re-compensated her, though he seemed to have had forgotten that she had already replaced the broken one and gotten her another one), since she rather liked the color, though the silver one was nice too -it had been cheap (she had to pay for it since she couldn't exchange the broken one cuz, well... it was _broken_), especially since she had been able to get a used one that was still in good condition.

_Perfect_ condition, in fact (she was a little OCD about that sort of thing -it annoyed her to no end if there even a _single_ scratch or even a smudge, on the screen)...

"D-Do you want the silver one or the black one...?" she asked, taking the game out of the silver and black ones (since she wasn't sure which he wanted).

"Ushishishi~ The Silver one is more suitable for the Prince, since it's a Royal color~" he smirked, making no sense what-so-ever...

Oh well, she thought, relaxing a bit as she shrugged (mentally of course -no need to offend the homicidal prince in _person_ when he could still kill her), and handed it over.

"Okay, do you want Diamond or Pearl?" she asked again -she had somehow managed to find her Pokemon Pearl before she had left home (for College), though she had already bought another one -Diamond this time (of course).

"Ushishishi~ _Diamond_ of course~" he said, taking the pro-offered game and copying her as he watched her slide the chip into the DS game slot in the back.

"Okay," was all she had said, before showing him how to turn it on and off -well, he'd figured that out already, though the options did confuse him (Why were there _two_ game options...?).

It took them to the main screen, and she tapped the top one on his screen, then her own, before pulling the 'styler' (term taken from Pokemon Ranger) out, tapping the screen lightly, as the Prince laughed.

"Well, I'm sure you don't want to play as a girl's character -do you want to start a new game for yourself?" she asked, figuring he wouldn't want to play as a girl named 'Dia' -what? She had been rather stuck at the time, and had decided to use a name she'd used for her Harvest Moon DS games (when the character was a girl, of course -who in their right minds would name a boy _Dia_?).

"Ushishi~ But of course~ The Prince is a _Prince_~" he reiterated, watching with slight interest as she tapped the 'new game' option.

Hmn... a touch-screen... that's what it was called, right? But it seemed that only the styler worked with it, he thought, poking the screen lightly with a finger, getting no reaction.

Some old guy was talking -he skimmed over it, before it got to asking if he was a boy or a girl.

"Ushishi~ What a silly game, the Prince is a_ boy_ of course~" he grinned, tapping the option as Mika watched, not touching her own screen as she waited and made sure he went through all the 'motions' correctly.

She watched him go through choosing his gender, name, and birthday {just pretend that's an option -can't remember if it was *sweats*}.

For gender, he obviously chose male -As for Name, he seemed to have to debate with himself on whether to use 'Prince' or 'Bel' seeing the limited amount of characters he was given for a name; And for birthday, he put his own of course! December 22nd~~

There was no time and date option since it took that information from the DS, and, with that, the game started...

* * *

Only once in a while, did he have to swallow his 'princely pride' to ask Mika a question as he played, but otherwise, he seemed to be getting along quite well -though he _was_ rather frustrated whenever he lost...

He was a Prince, after all!

But it was that frustration (of losing) that made him keep playing in order to beat who/what-ever brought him down, as he learned more -the elements (most) were pretty normal and he could easily figure them out.

The beginning Pokemon he had chosen was Piplup, much to Mika's amusement, asit had been her starter too!

Of course, she had long since gotten the other two Beginners through Wifi. She wasn't quite sure if that still worked (seeing as they were in a different world, now) though she had two of each just in case -in her PC storage thing as original evolution, as well as their second evolution.

The ones she was training now were the starter pokemon she was raising_ without_ evolution-izing them (they all held Everstones of course, so she wouldn't have to take care of that every time -useful, wasn't it...?)...

By the time Lussuria returned, he found both teenagers on Mika's bed, concentrated on the games, and smiled -it seemed that the two of them could get along after all~ He had been worried at first, but since they seemed to get along well and were 'bonding'... (Or so he thought since he didn't see him threatening her for information on how to pass a certain 'checkpoint'.)

So he left quietly, squealing a bit happily as he headed towards the kitchen -it was a good thing Squalo wasn't there, actually, since there was now no one to yell (at the top of his lungs) 'what the hell was wrong with him/anyone else' and interrupt the 'kids'...

Later on, he returned to find them still playing -albeit in different positions now (Bel still laying on his stomach, though he seemed to have only shifted slightly in the time it had taken Lussuria to make dinner, while Mika had moved to lay on her back, somewhat sitting against the pillows, though both were next to each other)- and was a little reluctant to make them stop.

But, he called them to dinner anyways.

"Hai~~ Dinner's ready, my darlings~ Please come down to the dining room~" he cried out, having long since gotten over the destruction that had taken place in the room, and had had the table replaced by one of the lower ranked Varia under his (and the rest of the Core Varia's) authority.

"Ah, Luss-nee! Okay!" Mika chirped rather obediently, saving and turning the DS off, before slipping it into her bag -which she was still wearing for some reason- before slipping off the bed, looking rather surprised at the time. "Ah... so late already...?" she blinked, staring at the blinking light of the digital clock in her room, before shaking her head and moving on.

"Ushishi~ The Prince will go in a second," he told them absently, not bothering to move as he beat the next trainer and saved as well (having stumbled upon the option) and continuing to play, though Mika had already left.

By the time he reached the Dining room, the others had started eating -no Squalo meant that Levi didn't have anyone to argue with, and so there was no food-fight today (either), luckily- but, much to the others' curiosity/irritation/amusement, he continued to play, dodging a fork that Levi had thrown (for whatever reason), by tilting his head slightly to the right, as he slipped into his seat.

The obnoxious (in the mind of much of the Varia, anywas) game music blasting on loudly with no consideration to the rest of them.

Mika sighed silently, but continued to eat, fervently hoping that no one would try to destroy the machine -though she doubted that she'd ever get it back...

The rest ignored him as he played, took a bite and chewed very so often, and ignored Luss's complaints (even Mammon's threat of fining him made him do nothing but turn the sound down).

The sound of clacking buttons continued to go on, though -but luckily, most of them had finished and were now leaving, glad to escape the obnoxious annoyance.

By the end, the only ones left in the room were Luss, Mika, Xanxus, and Bel, who had finished but was still playing, too lazy to move from his seat.

Mika sighed for the second time that night -it seemed that Bel was one of those gamers that got easily addicted... _Joy_.

She had turned Belphegor into a Game Freak...

She just hoped that this meant he wouldn't try to kill her anymore (if what had happened the night before counted). _Or_ that it would affect his performance, or she figured she'd have Hell to face...

Good thing that she had put that game into her bag with the rest of her games, or she would be one down on entertainment...

Oh well, she still had the Platinum version...

Somewhere.

* * *

**A/N**: Meh... 3,989 {Now _4,974_}Words...

Not bad, I guess... =D

**Spanner**: I finished it *seems to pop out of nowhere* Mind testing it for me? *holds clear lolli out*

**Authoress**: Gah! Don't scare me like tha- wait... _Candy?_ Ooooh! *snatches candy and happily puts it in mouth* Nmn... Leethi... (Yum~ Lycee...)

**Spanner**: Ah, is it good? *starting scribblings notes down*

**Authoress**: *nods vigorously* Ith bewy g'd! (It's very good!)

**Spanner**: I see *nods and writes more* Is it odd in any way?

**Authoress**: *tilts head* Ahd? (Odd?) *thinks and shakes head* Ith n'mmi and thweeh -tathes li' leethi too! (It's yummy and sweet -tastes like Lycee too!)

**Spanner**: *nods* I see. That's good...

**Authoress**: ...? *tilts head slightly* In ahn' caith fo t'dayth dithkwaima we haff tha un'n onwi Wawwo-tha' ageh!

**Mammon**: Muu... I can't understand a thing you're saying... *twitches* the only reason I'm still here is because you payed me (And I actually feel kind of sorry for you)...

**Authoress**: Wha-? *tilts head*

**Spanner**: She said 'In any case, for today's'... uh... 'disclaimer'... I think... 'We have the one'n only Wawwo-chan again'...

Oh, no, sorry, I think she meant 'Mammon-san'...

**Authoress**: *nods vigorously* Uth! (Yes!)

**Mammon**: *sweats* How the hell did you understand that...?

**Spanner**: *shrugs* I thought it was pretty simple -it's sort of like a code, y'know? *pulls out assortment of suckers*

Want one?

**Mammon**: ...No, thank you. *doesn't trust Spanner* And you-!

Don't you dare take another of those or I'm leaving! *snaps at Authoress*

**Authoress**: *teary eyed* Bu... but...

I want sugaaarrrr! DX *wails, not quite throwing a tantrum... _yet_*

**Mammon**: No, he may understand you, but _I_ can't.

Muu... Let's just get this over with... *sighs, feeling headache coming on*

**Authoress**: *nods* 'kay... *pouting*

**Mammon**: "Murasaki KuroNeko Rei {Now Murasaki Argenteria} does not own KHR!, Akira Amano does -and don't sue. Again, she spent all her money on me...

**Authoress**: *grins* Yup! *snuck a pop anyways, but is keeping it hidden in pocket for after Mammon leaves*

And that's all for today!

**Mammon**: Muu... I still can't believe you tunred Bel into a game-addict... *looks back to chapter*

**Authoress**: Hey, it worked! And I can _totally_ see him becoming obsessed... for a period of time!

Don't worry, it won't be for long... Well, until he gets bored anyways~ *grin*

All shall be explained in time *speaks mysteriously*

**Mammon**: *shrugs* Whatever.

Time's up by the way -don't call me again until you have the money... *leaves*

**Authoress**: Okaaaay~! *waves Mammon off, sticking pop into mouth* Oooh~ Tastes... pear... ish?

O.o What the-?

**Spanner**: ...That was supposed to be green tea... *sighs* I'll work on it again... *goes back to laptop*

**Authoress**: Meh, I don't mind -it's an okay flavor I guess... *shrugs* In any case, while Spanner's not listening:

The reason he doesn't know about the Omake is cuz I made sure he was busy =D XD He can't know the future yet, after all!

Oh, and Mika is about the same age as Bel, I've decided~ So now she's 15 -she'll turn sixteen in October, which means she'll be sixteen like Bel! XD

In any case, since Spanner's still busy with the Lolli's~

Matta ne! *waves ecstatically*

See You Again, desu~!

**Haru**: *appears out of nowhere* legasp! Linestealer!

**Authoress**: Shut up! You're not supposed to be here anyways! *kicks Haru out* Gosh! Don't ruin things! *grumbles*

**Spanner**: ...? *looks up, pulling headphones down for a moment, but shrugs hearing and seeing nothing unusual*

**Authoress**: Phew! *wipes off invisible sweat*

In any case- Ah, almost forgot! The Omake since this was a rather short -but eventful- one too! Again, another 'future' bit, since I don't think this scene will show up later on -but if it does, consider it a spoiler! XD Otherwise it's just a -somewhat- continuation/prequel of the Previous Omake~ ^^

But either way! Once again!: Matta ne~! *waves ecstatically*

* * *

**Omake**:

The day had been rather warm and pleasant -typical for Summer- though the blonde mechanic knew that it would be fall soon, and the weather would begin taking a turn for the colder. Which was why he was outside in the first place -seeing as he might as well enjoy the pleasant weather while it lasted.

He'd be stuck inside for a while soon enough, anyways...

And so it was that he was found by Aria as he worked on the machine that was his current project outside, in the courtyard near the yard.

"Ah, Spanner!" the teen looked up at the familiar voice to see Aria walking over -along with an onyx haired girl wearing a slight pout/frown on her face, as she tugged on the long ruffled skirt she wore (it ended almost at her ankles).

"Aria-san...?" he blinked, his curiousity showing, in his tone if not his body, as he looked from the younger girl to his female 'boss'.

"Sorry to bother you, Spanner, but everyone else seems rather busy today for some reason," she said with a slight smile.

Ah, so that was why it was so quiet, he realized, looking around and seeing that, indeed, the estates were practically deserted, there were so few people around at the moment.

Aria chuckled at his reaction, "In any case, I was hoping that you would show... Mikami, was it?" she asked, turning back to the girl, who nodded in confirmation.

He noticed that she didn't seem to like to speak much, her face hidden mostly by the shadow of the hat she wore -he would've probably thought she was a boy if she weren't wearing the skirt, actually, he realized after a moment's thought. Her shadowed eyes were sharp, though she seemed sort of quiet...

Not unlike himself.

"Well, Mikami, I hope you don't mind if Spanner, here, shows you around," she said, as the girl fidgeted slightly, playing a little with the hemm of one of the skirt's pleats again, before nodding, not bothering to look at either of them.

Aria seemed to smile, "I'm sorry for bothering you, Spanner~ But I have someplace to be right now -don't tell Gamma, though, okay?" she said, making a little 'shh' sign, with her finger, though she winked, blue eyes twinkling merrily.

Spanner seemed to think about this, before nodding, "Sure," he said, "It's not like I have to finish this today, anyways," he said, grunting slightly as he got up from his place next to the half-finished machine.

"Great!" Aria smiled, "Oh, but if he starts getting... well, _you_ know," she said, making a slight gesture, "Just tell him I went to Japan for... business," she said, "Wait a day or two if you can, though," she grinned, knowing how Gamma could act -he was _such_ a worrywart!

Spanner nodded, "Alright," as they watched her leave, the girl -Mika, wasn't it?- standing a little of to his side, as Aria waved, calling out yet another apology before running off (somehow managing to still be elegent as she did so)...

. [ **Mika's PoV** ] .

By now, Mika had gotten quite used to things in the KHR! world, but she_ still_ couldn't believe that the Varia were giving her an _Espionage _mission of all things...

And on the Giglio Nero!

She couldn't very well say no, though, she thought dully, irritably playing with the skirt Lussuria had somehow managed to force her into -he _knew _she hated skirts! she thought with a slight scowl -almost growling out loud, though she somehow managed to refrain (no need to freak the Spanner out, right...? Right).

Oh, but he had seemed rather absent minded, she remembered -she knew that Aria would find out, but seeing as she also seemed to know that Mika knew a certain amount of information about the future -already- even though she was _supposed_ to be a spying on them to find the information out, and knew (for some reason), that she wouldn't do anything to hurt the Giglio Nero, she had welcomed her with open arms.

Even though Mika was loyal to the Varia (and, retrospectively, the Vongola Decimo) -and they both knew it.

It had been quite a while since the Ring battles, though, and she wasn't sure whether the 'trails' had occurred for Tsuna and the others yet, but she had a feeling they hadn't, seeing as nothing had been said...

How long _was_ it supposed to be before Tsuna and the others were pulled into the Future, anyways? she wondered, though she couldn't seem to recall at the moment.

She nodded, though, in answer when Aria asked her a question, and spoke absently to the female when needed. But almost as soon as she blinked again, the woman was gone and she was left with Spanner, watching Aria's retreating back...

'Don't tell Gamma'...? (was about all she ascertained from the conversation) Wait, why-? Unless...!

Was she going to Japan for the Arcobaleno trials? She hoped not!

If so, she had to be with the Varia (which had become her family by now that she couldn't go 'back' -not home, but just 'back')!

She had to be with her grumpy 'Uncle' Xanxus, her money loving 'Papa' -as he _did_ act like a father to her at times and had previously been known as Viper- Mammon, her beloved (yet male) 'Mama' Lussuria, her 'Loud/Shark-mouth Big brother' Squalo, her homicidal 'Cousin' Belphegor -and, yes, even her (and she shuddered to even think this, but...) 'Old man/Uncle'_ Levi_...

She hadn't even met Fran yet! she realized. She didn't know quite when Fran would join -and she wanted to know! (How and When, that is)

Panic rose up to her throat for some reason -and she forgot about Spanner.

She had become so _close_ to the Varia now! How could they push her aside if they might need her...? The Vongola Decimo going 'missing' (though she knew where they were, and what they were doing, anyways) was a _huge_ thing!

No... No- she shook her head- the Varia weren't _soft_ (cuz, y'know, she was also their only _girl_ meaning she was treated just a_ little_ differently, of course), they wouldn't send her away unless they _needed_her away...

Yes, that was it -she was one of their best at 'spy-work' after all, and, since she had arrived, they had started to accept more 'Spy' Missions.

She and Bel had actually become -well, _somewhat_- friends, too, when she introduced him to RPG and Puzzle type games (which he had become addicted to for/after a while).

In fact, every once in a while, they would challenge each other to a 'match' and would play against each other on either his/her game systems.

At first, she had won, mostly because she had more experience, but soon enough, the self-dubbed genius caught up to her in 'points' (they actually kept score) -and now they were basically what one might call 'Even Steven'.

If she lost, she would usually win the next time/round, and vice versa. In any case...

She hoped that the mission wouldn't be too long, or that she could take breaks in between to visit (what she had become accustomed to calling) 'home'...

. [** Spanner's PoV** ] .

Spanner watched her expressions change with mild interest, a wrench shaped lolli in his mouth.

It was rather amusing, seeing her have -what _looked_ like- some sort of internal debate. But finally, she seemed to have come to a conclusion, and nodded to herself (which he took to be his cue to speak).

"You done thinking?" he asked, startling the onyx-haired girl.

"Eh?" she blinked, looking over to him, her eyes wide at the moment -and completely in view despite the fact she seemed to be trying to hide her eyes (or maybe she was weak to the heat? Meh, either way...).

"You were making faces," he explained, pulling out two of his custom-made wrench-shaped lolli's from his breast pocket. "Want one?" he offered.

"Oh," at that, she looked just slightly perturbed, but accepted the lollipop, "Thanks," she murmured, peeling the wrapper off before sticking the strawberry-flavored treat into her mouth.

"I'm Spanner," he said, unwrapping his own, before holding his hand out for her wrapper and tossing the waste into a trash can she hadn't seemed to have noticed nearby.

"I know," she said, looking up at him with what -for some reason- struck him as knowing eyes...

As if she already knew everything about him (which she actually probably did -though he didn't know it yet).

And he shuddered... But the notion was dismissed, and, almost immediately, when she spoke again.

"I was listening when Aria-san spoke -I'm Mikami, but everyone calls me Mika," she told him, holding a hand out for him to shake, "Nice to meet you, Spanner," she said, smiling at the blonde who just nodded and took her hand.

"Yeah," he responded, shaking the slim hand firmly, "Nice to meet you too..."

This was going to be the start of a _beautiful_ friend/relation- ship...

* * *

**~ Essere Proseguito...**

* * *

**Edit: **Yay! Revision complete! Now 4,973 Words as opposed to 3,989. *cheers*

And of course, not including the Omake~~ XD Heheh~~


	7. Shopping & Scams! The Prince & The Paupe

**Stuck in the KHR! World**

A Katekyo Hitman Reborn! Fanfiction

_by_ **Murasaki Argenteria**

* * *

6.** Shopping and Scams! The Prince and the Pauper...?**

* * *

Bel still had his little 'addiction' with the Game, though it wasn't quite so extreme as before, and peace had returned.

Well, _somewhat_ (or as much as it probably ever _could_ in the Castle, anyways).

Squalo still wasn't back yet, but the new 'Gola Mosca' machine was being set up in one of the Guest Rooms nearby...

And, surprisingly, Xanxus still had yet to have the room next to his cleared out (as in, for the machine and the people making 'so much fucking noise' to 'shut the hell up and/or get the fuck out'), when they finally started moving the Mosca in.

Unfortunately, things were still rather loud. Even _without_ their resident shark screaming their ears off...

* * *

Mika sighed, rolling over on the bed as she clamped one of the larger pillows over her head -she could still hear the men setting the Gola Mosca up in the room next to Xanxus', though... But luckily (for _all_ of them), Xanxus didn't seem bothered by this at all, instead, deeming to laugh every once in a while -to himself of course- when nothing was going on.

Most people just thought that the Varia boss had finally lost his mind -but no one complained though, as, really, none of them had any right to say anything about _that_ subject...

His maniacal laughter _did_ get sort of creepy at times, though -and, on one occasion, Mika had almost been tempted to throw one of her pillows at said Boss (though lucky for her, she had been in her room and, in the end, decided against it).

Of course, it was _also_ the day that Lussuria had promised to take her out shopping. The first time -just a few days ago- when he had been about to take her out shopping (for clothes, undoubtedly), they had gotten side-tracked at a new store and hadn't really be able to do any 'real shopping' as Lussuria had pointed out.

At the time, Mika had been overtaken by the urge to go in since the shop had so many cute things in the display window... It may have helped that they had had a 'few' anime/manga related things as well (she had been surprised to learn that some of the Manga from her world was available here as well, though it was -mostly- a plus in her mind) and Lussuria hadn't been able to resist her silently pleading eyes.

Not to mention that it was a new store and he was curious as well.

They had ended up getting quite a few things (both of them), and Lussuria stuck in the 'Yaoi' section (which she was _still_ surprised they actually had), while she had looked over some of their -the store's- other things (little knickknacks and whatnot), and had practically bought out half of the store -maybe a little more- as it was, together (since she may have understand it being spoken, but she couldn't read it -and the english ones that they had in stock, she had either already read or they just didn't catch her interest).

Lussuria had offered to pay for everything since Mika didn't have any their currency in this world (though her excuse was that she didn't have any Italian currency) -though Mika mentally resolved to pay him back when Lussuria had brushed the promise off, as they both knew she couldn't (at least at the moment).

Although, for some reason, it seemed that Mammon had decided that she needed a bank account, and had -a day or two after the shopping spree- set one up for her -in which she found a few thousand Euros, which translated to several thousand American dollars, which was _still_ more than she had ever seen (at least, at once).

It surprised her, really, especially seeing how stingy the infant was...

Mammon was adamant in that he had not been the one to put the money in, though. Though they had heard him mutter that he hadn't put in 'that much' later on (apparently he had 'only' put in about 25,000 Euros when he opened it, but there had been 50,000 when they finally looked in it later on).

And Lussuria had not known about it until she had been told over breakfast, and was given a check card (since she _was_ -technically- underage here. {She's 15 at the moment, remember! (and Bel's also 15 right now, just to make things clear)}) and a checkbook and had been told to balance it herself.

He had actually -quite thoughtfully- gotten her a savings _and_ checkings account somehow -despite the fact that there was no way she had any of the confirmational or legal documents needed to open/start an account.

None of them questioned it, though, deciding it wasn't worth the trouble of asking the infant.

So, Mika had tried to pay him (Lussuria) back, though he had refused, telling her that he had had too much fun to let it be ruined by this -besides, he was in charge of her now, and she could think of him as a mo-er... bro- no... a sister! Yes, a _sister_...! Which she already semi-did, though it was more of a sister/brother-ly best friend sort of way.

It was one argument in which Lussuria would not take 'no' for an answer, though, and she finally gave up.

So here they were, on _another_ (in _her_ mind, anyways) shopping spree -this time for clothes- with a certain blonde prince tagging along since he wanted to 'get a few more games' and Lussuria had been told (ordered) to find more clothes for him, as he was a Prince and needed some new, Princely clothes...

* * *

People stared (not obviously, but they still stared) as Mika and Lussuria -with Bel tagging along just a behind enough to be, yet not be, considered part of the trio- walked down the street. They were headed towards a shopping district that Lussuria was very familiar with to start out at (no one questioned the okama about his 'familiarity').

Bel was tagging along since he needed Luss to chose his clothes out (and he didn't want the same mistake as the _last_ time to happen again, when the okama had decided that _pink_ of all colors was the new vogue) -not to mention he was planning to get a few games for himself.

Maybe even a few Game Stations or whatever they were called.

That stop would be for last, though, Lussuria had told him -they needed to find clothes first, since it was 'more important'.

Bel had done nothing but frown for a few seconds before shrugging and giving his customary 'Prince-ly' laugh, before following/stalking them silently.

Right now, they were in a store with what looked like semi-punk/rocker type clothes.

Probably where they got Bel's striped shirts, Mika had figured as they walked in -the glint of chains around the room catching her eye as she wandered over. Bel looking around with mild interest and boredom while Lussuria seemed to know just where he was going.

He went right over to the cashier and demanded that he be shown their 'best wares', while Mika just looked around, a few things catching her eye -anything that could be considered 'cute', in a punk/goth-ish way.

Bel just stood grinning creepily at people, and sneering somewhat, playing around with a few of his knives with one hand, as the other stayed in his pants pocket for whatever reason.

"Mika-chan~! Over here!" called the effeminate Varia Officer, waving the girl over from the the display of belts hanging off a wall -a few were creepy, but they were alright, and most of them looked pretty cool.

"Ah, okay!" she called, smiling as she made her way over, with Bel somehow gravitating towards them by the counter -which was being held up so that they could go in. {Think one of those 'flippy' counters that can be lifted to go in and out from the cashier place with a door at the corner of one wall that one can walk in through -kinda like a giant closet in the back}

"We're going to take a look at some of their newest designs -mostly for Bel, but I think we'll be able to find a few things for you too~" he said with a wink (or rather, the impression of one), as he shooed them in first, following close behind.

"Eh? Really?" she asked as they followed Bel (who had gone ahead) to a couch and sat beside the Prince, so that the trio sat side by side with Mika in the middle, while a few of the store's 'helpers' stood to the side.

The articles brought up reminded her somewhat of some of the clothes that could be found at a store commonly known as "Hot Topic" in her home 'world'...

Hmn, actually, she wondered if they had any Hot Topic here, too...

Shaking her head mentally to rid her mind of the random thought in her head, she forced herself to pay attention as clothes were paraded out in front of them -how did they fit all this in the back anyways? she wondered absently, the stores looked so small from the front...

Lussuria shook her out of her thoughts easily with a squeal, "Ooh~! Mika-chan, look! Wouldn't that be_adorable_ on you~? And that 'suit' would look so handsome on you, Bel~!" he exclaimed, as another two sets were passed by.

They were similar except that one was a female version, while the other was geared more towards guys (though it was obviously unisex and gender-neutral).

"Ushishishi~ Well, the Prince guesses that it isn't so bad~" said the self-dubbed Prince as he grinned again, studying the 'suit'.

It consisted mainly of a pair of black, leather skinny jeans with multiple chains attached to it, and a punk-ish looking vest with strategically placed rips at the sleeves that looked natural, with a ragged, but stiff looking collar that was purposely flipped up. The zip-up vest was also adorned with a row of flat metal studs that went horizontally just at the edge of where the collarbone and shoulders would be when worn, and trailed into a slight V at the back of the vest.

The studs at the front looked a lot sharper than the ones on the back, though, while the shirt -of_course_- looked a lot like the striped black and red shirts he normally wore -only in purple instead of red- with sleeves that would trail just past the knuckles when worn.

"Ushishi~ It matches the 3rd crown that the Prince owns~" he grinned, "I'll take it~!"

Lussuria nodded, making some sort of motion with his hand, and the girl holding the set up by the hanger brought it over, leaning slightly so that Luss could whisper something into the woman's ear. She listened for a moment, before nodding, and going over to one of the racks against the walls to get another of the exact same set in Bel's size -just as Mika guessed, absently studying the set that Lussuria had recommended for _her_.

It was similar to Bel's except for the fact that, instead of a shirt and vest, it consisted of what looked to be a semi-gothic-lolita dress that looked more like it was a dress-length shirt, than an actual dress (so she really couldn't complain... yet. It was really only dresses and skirts that she had a problem with -especially skirts that went anywhere at/above the knees -she ).

The 'dress' seemed to be made of up three layers -the bottom layer was completely black, with jagged edges about and inch or two lower than the second layer, which was a dark grey color that was almost dark enough to be mistaken for a shade of black, and seemed to be the main 'body' of the shirt. Like the bottom layer, the edge of the shirt had jagged, strategically placed ripped edges and sleeves -the sleeves promising to go to the base of her thumb joint at the very least, while the longest edge would brush just past the outermost finger joint, which, honestly, suited her quite well. She liked long sleeves... The top layer of the dress ended at an equal distance as the bottom layer was to the middle/main layer of the shirt, and shared the same jagged edges, at the bottom of the dress and was the same color as the first/last layer, with a hood that seemed to come out of the bottom layer, yet was sewn into the top layer.

The vest, unlike Bel's went up to mid-riff, and had sleeves, though it also had ruffled, jagged edges like the shirt. Oddly enough, the sleeves were just a little bit of a 'poof' to it, and, like Bel's vest was a zip-up. Unlike Bel's, though, it was deep, grey -almost purplish- color that bordered on black, and had an obsidian black collar that flared out just past the shoulder, and ended -at the back- between the shoulder-blades in a triangle-ish shape, though, from the front, the collar looked like a regular dress shirt collar -if dramatically larger than a normal one, and looking a bit more like it was a mini-cape that went just past the shoulders. It seemed to be made of a stiff, black material that matched the color of the shirt and had a slight tilt at the tips, curling up by just a little.

The pants, on the other hand, seemed to be rather tight-looking black skinny jeans, and, unlike Bel's pants did not have any real shine to it, though it had a bit of a 'faded' look, despite the dark color.

Like Bel's, though, both sets seemed to come with black, leather boots that went up to the calves, and came either with belt-buckled that fastened up the side, or the typical zip-up, though the zip-up ones had buttons that trailed up the side, and were buttoned with straps of similar material (as the boots). They also came in male/female 'versions', meaning that 'female' versions had a more obvious looking heel, while the 'male' version still had a bit of height, though it was more of a 'platform' heel than an actual heel.

Both started at at least an inch or so in height, while the female version went up another half in at the back for a total of two inches.

"..." Mika stared at the options, before deciding that she liked the look of the belt-buckled shoes better -besides, she was pretty sure that Bel would kill her (or at least attempt to) if she chose the same set of shoes as him...

But, other than that, she supposed that she liked it -though whether or not she agreed that she would look good in it as Lussuria was insisting was a completely other matter altogether...

Although...

"Do I _have_ to wear the ribbon...?" she asked rather reluctantly, eye-ing the grilly grey and white hairband (though she was careful to keep her eyes from being drawn to the attachments). She had to admit that the accessory was cute, but...

"Of _course_ not, darling~" Lussuria exclaimed, seeming to mimic her thoughts. "The colors just clash_horrendously_ with the clothes!" he told her (though the 'horrendous' part was a bit over the top) as he eyes the floral part -it had a _disgustingly_ bright neon pink center...

Waving the woman holding the set over as well, he whispered something into her ear, to which the woman nodded as well.

"Mika-chan, you wouldn't mind trying this on, would you?" he asked, smiling at the girl in a way she just couldn't (in her mind) refuse.

"...Of course not," she said, physically smiling at Lussuria, though mentally, she balked a bit -she hated having to try things on...

Well, at least there were pants... she thought, mentally sulking. Even _if_ they looked more like those stretchy tights that one usually wore under a dress (despite being skinny jeans)...

Almost as soon as the words were out of her mouth, she found herself being lead away by the woman -unlike Bel (who was paying for his own clothes, of course) they really couldn't (or at least, _she_couldn't) afford to waste money buying something only to find out later that it was too small, or too big. On the other hand, Bel was paying for his own, so, if he really wanted to waste money on a set of clothes that wasn't his size and have to return to buy another set, that was _his_ choice -especially since there was a no refund policy at the store...

The woman, who, unlike most didn't seem to be wearing any piercings (most of the 'helpers'/workers at the store seemed to have multiple), let her to a room to the side, and handed her the clothes -and, being the expert that she seemed to be, was able to tell her size perfectly, having put the 'display' away and grabbed another of the same set for her to try on, as well as a black, grey, and white version of the hair-piece that did _not_ have any bright, neon-colored centers.

"..." Once she was finished changing, the woman helped her put on the hair piece, adjusting it to the best position, before leading her back to Lussuria who squealed almost as soon as he caught sight of her.

She looked _soo_ cute~~!

The woman smiled slightly, before speaking out, "We also have cat ears similar to this if you'd like," she continued, obviously an experience shopkeep(er).

"Oooh definitely! Mika-chan, you don't mind do you~?" he exclaimed. The store's employees ignored Lussuria's little 'quirks', as the woman (apparently the one in charge of the place) motioned for one of the other girls to get a pair in the same colors.

Mika just shook her head to Lussuria's question rather shyly, causing the attachments on the hairpiece to bob and weave a bit with her movements, "Not at all, Luss-nee," she said, smiling slightly. She was actually rather excited at the prospect of getting a new set of cat ears (her current pair -the ones in her bag that Luss was holding at the moment- was getting a bit... disfigured... to say the least)...

Not too far off to the side, Bel's pile of clothes seemed to be getting larger as he continued to look through all the 'men's style clothing. He apparently really seemed to like the style of the store's clothes, and would be buying a _lot_...

At the moment, though, he was just a bit distracted by Mika -whose 'frills' _did_ stand out, considering that rest of her clothes were black and dark enough a grey that it looked almost black.

The peasant actually looked sort of cute, quite honestly...

And in this style...

He grinned, "Ushishishi..."

Needless to say, the employees helping him were more than a little creeped out by this, though they somehow managed to hide it.

After all, they got all _sorts_ of customers at the store... There was that one really tall and weird old guy that visited them once every other month or so -the one with so many piercings that even the girls employed at the store got sick just looking at him...

Not to mention those weird umbrellas he toted around... {Guess who..! XD}

* * *

After another hour or so, they were finally ready to leave the store -Bel even had to call someone up to have the all the clothes shipped back (he was apparently feeling much like a 'gentleman' today) -even Luss and Mika's, though he had to 'specially' order the Varia grunts to _not_ get the clothes mixed up.

Mika doubted that it would that easy, though, seeing as the Prince had used up all of the store's stock of 'special' bags, causing them to -quite apologetically- give Mika and Lussuria the use of their store's stock of the original Black bags that they used to use -which, Mika had to admit, weren't quite as bad as the women had made them out to be. True, they weren't shiny and didn't have an almost mirror-like reflective surface, but they were cute enough, and they both had the Store's Logo on it.

But, apparently the Prince was infatuated with the color silver (especially since he could somehow see his reflection in any kind of silver, not matter how light or dull) and would take no other.

Not to mention that he had bought more than the 'girls' (Luss and Mika), and was probably their best customer since Lussuria's last visit, seeing as he had bought out practically half of all the male-centric clothes -_and_ silver jewelry.

In any case, they were currently enjoying the cold sweets that they had bought after the little 'excursion' as they walked around.

Lussuria had even managed to convince Mika to wear the first outfit they had chosen (though with the ribbon and not the cat ears, sadly) since it looked so 'cute' on her, and she had even been given a matching (and _very_ chic) 'gothic' purse that she could use to store a few things (though she still had her bag with her, though she had somehow managed to figure out how to convert it into 'backpack mode') that she would be able to take out easily rather than rummaging around her messenger bag-er... backpack.

She already had a few hair accessories (bought afterwards) stored in the purse, as well as a few pens and a notepad she had been given by the (quite frankly) amused manager of the store when she had been caught eyeing the items with rather dreamy looking eyes (the woman was not only a pretty and strict lady -but she was so kind, too! Mika had already taken a liking to the woman, but this just topped the cake). She had also gotten a stick of shimmery 'double-sided' lip gloss (pearly white and pale sakura pink in color) that Lussuria had insisted would look wonderful on her -and had bought it for her without even waiting for an answer. She had also acquired a few cute knickknacks that were small enough not to need bags -little things, like keychains and those adorable/cute little phone straps/accessories...

At the moment, though, the self-proclaimed Prince was walking alongside with them, wearing a grin that could rival the Cheshire's as he ate his strawberry crepe. Mika, on the other hand, was enjoying a refreshing coconut/vanilla gelato, while Lussuria had a regular triple cone {not too hard to guess the flavors, I'd think -or maybe just imagine what you'd like it to be XD} ice cream, as they continued on down the street.

They had actually had a lot of fun that day -even _if_ a certain prince wouldn't admit it (Princes didn't do such girly things, after all, so he kept insisting that he was their 'escort').

"Ushishishi~ So, what now?" asked the Prince, satisfied enough to let the 'ladies' choose what to do next, now that he had gotten his strawberry crepe.

"Hmm... Ne, Mika-chan~ Do you have anything else you'd like to do?" asked Lussuria, giving his ice cream another absent-minded lick.

"Mn... Not really," she said after a moment's though -once the spoon of sweet coconut gelato had melted on her tongue, of course. She honestly couldn't see why people disliked coconut so much... It was a wonderful fruit...!

Even _if_ it was a bit hard to crack open.

They had all forgotten the Prince's original objective -the Game shop- until they passed it by.

Mika stopped, as the other two walked a few more steps before realizing she wasn't with them anymore.

"Mika-chan...?" Lussuria tilted his head slightly as he watched her stare at the store's display window...

Hmn... a game store...? Oh, wasn't that the reason that Bel had so kindly offered to 'escort' them today...?

"Ushishishi~ See anything interesting, peasant?" Bel asked, only to get an absent-minded nod in response, as said 'peasant' as seemed to debate something internally.

"Mou~ Why don't we just go in, then?" asked Lussuria. He wasn't really all that into games, although...

If they had any of those japanese dating sim-games...

"Ushishi~ Good idea, Lussuria~ Come on, peasant! Or are you going to stand and stare there all day~?" prompted the prince rather rudely, though he was really teasing her, as he grinned.

Mika blinked, "Eh?" she looked over in time to see her companions already walking into the store.

"Ah-! W-Wait for me!" she called, running after them, only to stop, gasping silently as she looked around...

This was... a gamer's _heaven_! (not that she technically/really was one -she really only played occasionally and/or when she was interested)

"Hello miss," the shopkeeper spoke in Italian, though he seemed to sense that she was a foreigner, "Are you interested in any of our games?" he asked, before noticing her appearance -ah, one of those 'gothic-lolita' styles, wasn't it? So maybe she was one of those 'anime/manga' lovers -he got those kinds occasionally, so it wasn't all that hard for him to pick them out.

They were just... different... somehow, from regular 'gamers'.

"Eh? Ah, er... _si_, signore," she said in rather faulty Italian, though really, she was trying -she could probably say it better if she weren't so nervous...

The man smiled, ah, she could speak Italian! Albeit faulty, but hey, she _was_ a potential customer~

A sly look entered the man's eyes as he took another look at her clothes, and their quality, "Well then, signorina, you have come to the right place!" he said, "We have so many games! And even the, eh... what do you call it... ah... 'anime'... was it not?" he babbled on, as she struggled to keep up (the store was rather crowded, and most of the things were precariously placed) without knocking anything over, though she perked at the word 'anime'.

"Uhm... e-excusi... signore..." she started, pretty sure she had said it wrong {it's actually 'mi scusi' not 'excusi'}, but went on anyways, "I'm sorry to ask, but... etto*..." she lapsed into japanese momentarily before going on, "Do you have any games -or manga- in English...?" she asked.

The man blinked, 'Hectogram'? What was she- ah, English, he realized -she really _was_ a foreigner.

"Of course, of course!" he said, switching to rather broken English, "We servire* all our clienti*'s needs!" he said, leading her towards another section that was less filled than the rest, "Qui! We have-è arrivato*!" he said, mentally rubbing his hands together at the profit he would be able to make if he heightened the prices for her -she looked rather like some lady, of whatever 'family' {he thinks she's a noble} she came from must be rich...!

Sure it was scamming/conning, but it would make _him_ molto ricco*!

* * *

Almost as soon as Bel looked up from the games he had thought were interesting and had picked out the ones he wanted for purchase, he realized that Mi- the _Peasant_ was missing...

And scowled -he could see Lussuria squealing as he went from game to game (all apparently 'H' dating sims) being the weirdo he was, and lost in his 'daydreams'...

Bel shivered and turned away (no need to reveal that he -in any way- _knew_ the gay (in both ways) peasant) before looking around for the girl.

Where _was_ she...?

Mammon would kill him (first and foremost) if he lost the damned girl, he thought, scowling, and glaring around from behind his screen of blonde hair...

And even though the 'peasants' in the shop couldn't see, they all felt some sort of chill going up their spines...

A certain 'gay' companion not included.

* * *

To say she was horrified was rather an understatement -she was appalled at how much the games cost!

But, oh wait... what was the euro to American dollar conversion...? She wondered -damnit! She had never learned that! she realized.

Maybe it was different from American money -like how apparently Germany's money was worth a _lot_less than the American dollar...

Or maybe the man was trying to scam her? she thought, shivering suddenly for no apparent reason.

Actually, she had a feeling she knew why, but couldn't quite understand it as she rubbed her arms in an effort to warm them -was the shirt material too thin? she wondered absently, as she half listened to the man speaking in faulty English mixed with Italian and looked through the games...

Ah, but... there was that one that caught her eye... What was it called...?

Well, something to do with RPG, in any case -even if it wasn't for the DS system...

Hmn... she wondered if she could get an English/American model game cube system or maybe a PSP or Wii...? No, maybe a PS2? Did they even _have_ those consoles here...?

"Anno*... Excuse me..." she corrected herself as she lapsed into Japanese again, as the man gave her a slightly confused look before listening to her request...

* * *

A_ha_!_ There_ she was~!

"Ushishi~" Bel grinned slightly before frowning, then scowling, as he heard what the man was saying to the girl.

He walked over a bit more slowly (and without Lussuria since he was still occupied with the 'H' games -which he had recently become 'addicted' to himself), his irritation giving way to anger as he realized what the mean was doing.

He was trying to _scam_ her! he thought rather angrily -for whatever reason (he had no idea why), he had somehow convinced himself that it was because she was _his_ servant/peasant, and that scamming her meant he was trying to scam _him_ of all people -a _Prince!_

"Ushishishi~" the scowl turned into a very, very, _very_ cold smile...

He would teach this _Peasant_ what happened when he messed with a Prince's belongings...

{Note: The reason he thinks that is because he's supposed to 'make sure nothing happened to her' and basically Mammon figured that two was safer than one, and if he didn't say something to *cough*threaten*cough* the Prince, he'd do something that would get her injured, and Mammon doesn't want Mika to get injured on his watch -cuz his Master's a crazy scary person when she's mad. XD}

* * *

As soon as she felt that chill she froze, no longer listening to the man babble on about something or other (she stopped paying attention after a while, and had been skimming the games, pretending to listen and look interested), as she realized who was coming over, and what his current 'emotion' was (she could tell from the sudden drop in temperature and the scary looking smile/aura that he was angry about something).

The familiar laugh sent a chill down her spine -it was cold, _very_ cold, and something told her that_some_one was going to die within the next few minutes...

Belphegor -it could only be Bel- sauntered up, and casually threw an arm over her shoulders (something that shocked her greatly for multiple reasons).

"There you are, _Principessa_..." he said, grinning what she _knew_ was a maniacal smile, though the man looked so ecstatic he didn't seem to noti- _Wait_ a minute...

Did he just say '_Principessa_'...?

_Princess?_ She willed her eyes not to widen as she realized that he was playing at something here -one thing she knew for sure, was that she should never, _ever_ interrupt the homicidal Prince's 'fun'...

She had tried a few days ago (albeit failing) to get him to let one of the lower ranked Varia go -apparently the man had looked at him wrong- and had received a rather serious promise (threat) that she would be hurt -_very_ badly- if she didn't leave...

Needless to say she had been scared shit-less...

Belphegor -for all that he was lazy and possibly (probably) psychopathic most likely psychotic)- was _not_one to cross when he was being so serious like that...

And of course, she had left, though she tried not to let her fear show and backed out of the situation slowly, since she knew he would use any -and probably all- weaknesses she showed against her...

* * *

A little while later, Mika, Lussuria, and Bel could be found at the park; Bel was practically sprawled on the bench, his expression almost unreadable (well, he was 'smiling' but... one never really knew with the homicidal prince...), with Mika sitting next to him, though she had scooted as close to Lussuria as she could without alerting the effeminate man to her nervousness, as said male sat on her other side, and gushed over a 'few' things he had gotten that could be talked about in public without people staring at him (any more) strangely (than usual, anyways).

He didn't seem to notice how pale Mika looked, or the sullen air about the Prince -even though he had gotten what he'd wanted.

Mika had also gotten what she had been looking for -and a little more- but she was not quite 'happy' either.

As said, she was rather pale.

Lussuria was finally alerted that something was wrong when silence met his question after the entire oh... five minutes...(?) of babbling.

"...Mika? Mika-chan...?" Lussuria frowned, finally noticing how pale she seemed as she also realized that Bel was just as silent -a seemingly thoughtful frown on his face, not to mention he was not laughing his signature 'Ushishishi~' laugh either...

He had been gushing over how 'nice' the Game Shop's owner had been to give them such a discount on everything! Why, he'd even given them a few 'promotional' items that were not only expensive, but half of which weren't even supposed to be out yet! And for _free_...!

Poor man seemed Iso nervous, tho- Wait...

Lussuria's eyes widened from beneath his shades as he realized what might have happened.

Bel had intimidated the man! And, judging from Mika's look, he had done it in front of her, too...

Oh, the poor dear! But... Seeing Bel's _still_ unhappy look, he must have done something horrible...

And yet the man still lived -and was _seemingly_ unharmed...

He frowned, "Ne, Mika-chan, are you alright?" he asked, looking very concerned for the girl, brows furrowed -well, it'd probably be best to act as if he didn't notice anything, if the air was anything to go by... He had a feeling that Mika might break down t time, while Bel could end up killing all the 'innocents' there if he pushed too hard -and it'd be _such _a shame. It was such a nice area to shop in~~

"Eh-?(!)" Mika seemed to jumped, startled, before she stared up at him -and into his eye- er... _shades_.

"Oh, no, I-I'm fine," she twittered nervously, glancing over at Bel, who just seemed to frown to himself a bit more.

Luss frowned, "Hmn... Really~?" he asked, obviously not convinced -but, if she didn't want to talk about it...

And since it seemed that pushing Bel -at the moment- might just set him off, too... It'd probably be best not say anything as he'd thought.

"Y-Yeah," she seemed to be trying to smile -though failing, he could see, which caused the normally 'gay' effeminate man to frown before he thought of something.

"Ah! I know! You must be hungry!" he said, as if just realizing -yes, some food, or something sweet might help at the moment.

"I saw a dolci* vendor just a little ways away! You like Coconut, right?" he smiled, pretending to be his energetic self again as he jumped up, "I'll be right back~" he told her, "Wait for me here, Mika-chan~~!" he called, before practically disappearing off into the direction.

"Eh?(!) N-No, wait, Lussuria-!" she called, half getting up to stop him, but too late...

* * *

Mika sat back down with a sigh, purposely sitting just a bit farther from the Prince, but pretending that it didn't bother her (sitting near the Prince, that was).

Nope, not at all...

Oh, who was she kidding! Akira Amano never revealed that Bel could have such a scary side!(!)

But then again, Tsuna and the Vongola Decimo were the protagonists, not the Varia...

But to say that she was 'alright' with it had to be a bit of an understatement -she was pretty much a nervous wreck!

She had been there when Bel had threatened to kill the man in the most painful way possible -and when she had tried to stop him (she was still shocked that she had clung to his arm like that) his cold look was obvious despite the fact that his eyes were hidden under that curtain of blond hair...

For once, she was actually glad she couldn't see the Prince's eyes, as, even without showing them his expression had been so cold...

Just... _so_ cold...! she thought, unconsciously rubbing her arm again -it was going to end up being a habit if things went on like this, she thought somewhat absently, though she didn't realize that Bel's eyes were on her again, as she stared rather blankly into the setting sun...

Hmn... The sunset was sort of pretty...

Hearing a light rustling noise, she looked over, only to be a bit taken back by the fact that Belphegor was now standing beside her -and facing her.

"Ah- B-Belphegor Principe, wha-"

"Bel," he said suddenly, causing her to blink.

"Er... What?" she tilted her head slightly, not quite sure that she'd heard right if at all.

"Bel, just call me Bel," he said, seeming to stare right through her.

She rubbed her arm again, "O-Oh... Okay... Bel," she said, almost tentatively -maybe she should've added the 'Principe'...?

But Bel scowled, as she seemed to recede back into her thoughts.

"Oi, Peasant!" he snapped, making her look up at him just in time for a pair of -surprisingly- soft lips to crash into hers.

Her eyes widened, shock written all over her features, as she realized something very, _very_important...

_Belphegor was taking her first kiss!(!)_

She almost didn't realize that she could see his eyes through his hair at this distance (they were so close) when he pulled back, still scowling.

Nope, _nothing_. He didn't feel anything from the kiss, but for some reason, he was still feeling rather upset despite that fact that there should've been no reason for his ire...

Why...? He wondered, he didn't seem to like this Peasant (thank _god_!) but for some reason that blank look on her face irritated him -and for whatever inane reason he was angry at himself, too...

Yet... for some reason, it was different from kissing all those other girls {Yes, Bel is a 'pimp'~! XD Lol!}, and he felt very confused all of a sudden...

So he growled, breaking her out of the 'spell' he had put her under (i.e. shock).

"Wh-Wha- What-?" she started -damn, the stutter was back! she thought, swallowing a bit thickly before going on.

Just what the _hell_ had he been trying to do...?(!)

Bel tsked, dismissing all his thoughts, as he glared at the girl hiding his confusion, "Tell Lussuria I already went back," he scowled, hands going into his pockets, as he walked away, feeling even worse now for some reason...

But one thing had been decided, at least...

_She's mine now_...

Bel had claimed her.

* * *

Lussuria found Mika by herself when he returned, toting three crepes -in strawberry (Bel's), Coconut (Mika's), and Mint-Chocolate (Luss's) flavors- in hand.

"Oh my... Er... Mika-chan...?" he started, blinking a bit at her blank stare (she was still staring in the direction Bel had left), "Mika-chan...? Are you alright...?" he asked, frowning as he waved one of the crepes in front of her, seeing as both hands were full.

"Eh?" Mika seemed to come out of whatever 'thoughts' she had been thinking, and blushed, "Ah- Lussuria-nee!" she looked startled, "I'm so sorry! I didn't see- I didn't realize you..." she started.

Lussuria just chuckled a bit sadly -it seemed that something had happened while he was gone... (Darnit! He'd missed the action... he thought, pouting.)

"It's alright~" he said, hiding his sadness, "Here, you better eat your crepe before it goes soft~" he said, handing her the treat with a smile, as she thanked him softly, "So, Where's Bel-kun~?" he asked, tilting his head slightly after looking around a bit when he noticed that the wayward royal was nowhere in sight.

Mika seemed to chew at her lip thoughtfully, as she stared at the warm crepe in her hands, "He- He said... to tell you that he was going back..." she murmured, as she brought the slightly steaming treat to her mouth and bit into it.

"I-It's good..." she mumbled, looking surprised.

Lussuria chuckled, "Well I would hope so! I spend a long time in that line! And Bel ran off, too!" he pouted, taking a large bite out of his own before giving Mika a sly look.

"Wanna share his?" he asked, and, before she could protest that it was too much, he added, "Half and half of course~" he winked, causing the girl to giggle.

"Al-Alright, Luss-nee!" she grinned, smiling up at the man -ah, so it _had_ worked (his ploy to cheer her up).

He had managed to cheer her up for now... he thought, smiling -he really _had_ come to think of her as somewhat of a 'daughter/sister' after their time together...

He had been able to teach her a few basic self defense moves, too~

Well, Xanxus had ordered it, but he would've done it anyways~

She was already part of the 'family' now...

Without thinking, he smiled gently, ruffling her hair (and mussing it, and the ribbon up a bit) despite her half spoken protest.

But then, they shared a smile that seemed to make all other thoughts go away as they started to laugh -a happy laugh- despite the stares...

{People thought that Luss was a Pedo or something -or maybe some really weird uncle, from the girl's -Mika's- reactions...}

* * *

**Translation** (if needed):

etto* Uhm (japanese) or 'Hectogram' (Italian) it actually does mean that apparently =D I checked! Using Google Translate, so I'm not 100% sure, but... eh, close enough~ XD

servire* to serve (verb) 'per servire' actually, but as said, the guy was speaking _broken_ English, substituting words he didn't know with ones he did or were similar =D

clienti* Clients/Customers -again, replacement of a word he didn't know with something similar

Qui! We have-è arrivato* Here! We have Arrived! 'è arrivato' means to have arrived, but he attached it to 'have' to it actually sounded like 'we hav-eh arrivato' as if 'have' and 'è' were one word -again, 'faulty' english =D

molto ricco* very rich -not quite sure what kind of 'rich'ness, but eh... you all know what I mean... right? =P

'H' dating sims: just in case no one knew what this means -it means 'hentai/ecchi' dating sim games -you know, 'R' rated. XD Or more 'perverted' so basically for people 16-17+ =P

anno* 'uhm' (english) or 'year/grade/ any twelve-month span' (Italian) Lol, apparently Japanese can mean Italian things =D The man thought she was speaking Italian but then realized it was English (or thought so) and figured it was just some English word he hadn't learned...

dolci* 'Sweets' dolce=sweet

* * *

**A/N**: And... That ends today's Chapter! XD Actually, I planned to update sooner... =(

I missed updating on Xan-chan's birthday! DX *wails*

Oh, but today's chapter was pretty long! XD So I'm happy!: 5,812 {Now _7,622_!} Words! WITHOUT Translations and the A/N! XD *cheers*

And... since Span-chan is still busy -points to a mess of tech stuff and a half visible top of blonde hair- with whatever he was busy with!

Today's guest...

Our very own Boss of the Varia...

Xanxus! *cheers*

**Xanxus**: *grumbles as the curtain is drawn to reveal a glaring Xanxus tied to his throne with Flame-proof rope* What the hell, you #&($^(&$ Piece of Scum! (words censored due to... well, it's Xanxus, so... XD)

**Authoress **: *grins* Aw~ I love ya too, Xan-chan~ :hearts:

**Xanxus**: *freezes half way through another cuss and glares, eyes narrowed* _WHAT_ did you call me...?(!) *room temp drops several degrees below zero*

**Authoress **: ... *shivers* ...? *blinks* Xan-chan? *tilts head, oblivious to atmosphere except for the chill* Meh, is it just me or did the room just get colder...? *shivers*

**Xanxus**: -glaaaaaaaaares- %(&#%(&! *OU#$YOJ! YOU !(*^#$)(&#($^)*+)*+)$&#)*&!)! DON'T CALL ME )**&#$ XAN-CHAN YOU !$*)##& #)(#$& !

**Authoress **: (O.o) *shocked* XANXUS! *gasps* THIS IS A FANFICTION! NOT YOUR $*(&$in #)*&#$ TIME! *glaaare*

**Xanxus**: *glares back* Tche, as if you can stop me you #*&#$^ Bitch! *growls*

**Authoress **: WHAT!

*argument starts*

**Spanner**: *pops out from elsewhere, raising brows after pulling Goggles up* Wow... They're really going at it... {as much as a tied up Xanxus can anyways XD}

...Maybe I should just do the disclaimer and explain everything else... *somehow speaks loud enough for the arguers to hear*

**Authoress **: NO! XANXUS HAS TO DO IT! DX *wails/almost forgot the whole reason Xanxus was pulled in*

**Xanxus**: *scowls* Fuck no! *glares again*

**Authoress **: *eyes narrow* Do. It. *holds up disclaimer board*

**Xanxus**: No. *somehow burns the board with Rage flames and smirks*

**Authoress **: Fuck! *drops flaming board and cusses up a storm, stomping it fire*

Shit! I forgot about his Guns! *glares at smoldering pile of ash that was once teh disclaimer board*

Oh... wait... that was the one Levi made... Nevermind~! *grins*

**Xanxus**: *sweats, thinking: _Fuck, is she bipolar or what?(!) No, wait-*_ WHEN THE HELL DID YOU STEAL MY GUNS YOU $#(^# LITTLE BITCH! *glares, noticing the missing weight in his now flaming hands*

**Authoress **: *smirks* I have my ways~ Now DO THE DAMN DISCLAIMER OR 1) I will DESTROY your guns 2) I will keep you captive until the end of time, and 3)... *grins evilly* I shall OBLITERATE the _CROWN JEWELS_ *laughs maniacally*

**Xanxus**: *eyes widen at teh horror, and, though he doesn't cross his legs, he keeps them shut and together* You are fucking _INSANE!_ *stares at Murasaki Argenteria*

**Authoress **: *grins maniacally* Why thank you~! *beam*

**_Now do the damn Disclaimer_***evil eyes/glares*

**Xanxus**: *grumbles* ...ch doesn't own KHR!...

**Authoress **: *tilts head to the side sweetly* _Nani...?_

**Xanxus**: *scowls* I SAID YOU DON'T FUCKIN OWN **KHR****!** THAT TRASH AKIRA WHATEVER DOES! *snaps*

**Authoress **: *grins* Okidokes~ Oh, and happy (belated) Birthday Xan-chan~! XD *kisses cheek*

**Xanxus**: ... *grumbles and scowls but says nothing, glaring*

Can I fuckin' _leave_ yet? *demands*

**Authoress**: *grins* Oh, _sure_, as soon as Lussuria gets here~ *grins*

Sad to say, but Levi got killed (maimed) by the security system so he couldn't pick you up *beams* Oops~

**Xanxus**: ... *stares, thinking: _What the Fuck-?(!)*_

**Lussuria**: *bursts in* I'm here for the party~! *is wearing a bright pink feathery boa(?) and... a party dress*

**Xanxus**: *turns pale, and starts twitching*

**Authoress**: GAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHH! NUUUU! *wails* THE PINK! IT BUUUURRRRNNNNSSSS! *hisses*

_LUSSURIA!_ *somehow glares through hands, scowling*

**Lussuria**: How _rude!_ *pouts, sniffing, then*

*blinks* Oh... Right... Sorry, Ria-chan~! I forgot! *apologizes, waving the end of the feathery... monster... thing...*

**Authoress**: _JUST GET RID OF IT! NOW_! *screeches, practically clawing eyes out* The pink...! *moans in pain*

**Lussuria**: Right, right! *hastily hides the hideo-er pink... thing* It's gone now!

**Authoress**: *peeks over and sighs, removing hands from eyes* Phew! _Gosh_, Luss! You HAVE to remember not everyone likes pink! *pouts*

**Lussuria**: ... Right. *sweats, thinking: _darling, you don't _dislike_ pink, you're practically as weakened by it as the 'babies' are by the non-trinisette..._*

**Xanxus**: *somehow manages to swallow bile* _Finally_, scum! *scowls at Lussuria* Get me out of here!

**Lussuria**: Ah, boss... Was it your surprise party we were here for...? *tilts head* Your birthday is... AH! October 10th! Oh dear! I have to call the others! *completely forgot*

**Authoress**: Oh, save me some cake! But, eh... Do you mind not having the party here? I still gotta give the readers the OMAKE! *frowns* I promised someone a somewhat Bel-centric Omake...

I think...

No wait! I promised a little BelXMika...!

*shrugs* Oh well~ XP I got it in -It's still gonna end up 48Mika, but like I said! XD A certain reader has been supporting me from the beginning, and requested it, so... yeah... XD

She knows who she is... I think (kiryuu-chan, you're a girl, right...? *sweats*)

**Lussuria**: Oh, sure, darling~! *smiles* I don't mind~ I'll just take Boss back to the castle then~ Arrivederci, darling~! *waves and drags throne (along with still tied up -and now cussing- Xanxus) out*

**Authoress**: Bye-bi's~! *grins, waving*

**Spanner**: *watching it all with interest* ...Ah, gotta get back to work... *remembers, and disappeared into ceiling*

**Authoress**: Wha- *confused* _How_...? *looks over at mess of technology* What...? *blinks then shakes head*

In any case! XD The Omake! It didn't come out as well as I would've liked, but... *shrugs* I did my best! ^^

Ah, and it's related to the last chapter! ^^ Consider it an apology for not updating on the tenth! ^^

...Crap! I forgot to wish Xanxus a happy birthday! *forgot she already did* LUSSURIA! WAIT~! *runs after*

**Spanner**: *pops out again, sighing* Since she ran off, looks like I have to get it out to you...

Well, whatever... Enjoy! Apparently this one is... 1,250 Words long...? *shrugs* Eh, around that, I think... I wasn't paying attention...

And... *reads paper* R&...R?

...Whatever that means... *disappears again and the sound of tinkering is heard*

* * *

**Omake**:

...To say that Belphegor could be annoying was a complete and utter understatement...

He could be absolutely irritating -even when he wasn't trying to be.

Example one: Pranks, or, rather, _traps_ that he will set up once in a while when he was 'bored' and wasn't feeling Lazy.

Such as the one that he had set up just a while ago in front of Levi's room, which ended up in a rather... horrific... memory that most of those present tried to block out.

Example two (and a rather non-recent/recent one, at that): He didn't think of others. Actually, he _never_thought of anything except in relation to himself (and his princely-hood). But that's not the point here.

As of late -as much of the Varia knew, anyways- Belphegor had become addicted to _Games_. Why? No one has yet to figure that out. As for _how_...

Lussuria and Mika have refused to comment, seeing as it would endanger said girl's life -the only reason Bel had said nothing was, as said before, because he was absorbed in his little 'games'.

Actually, they were more surprised he had not destroyed the machine (along with the game) from sheer frustration already. For some reason, he seemed to be rather taken with it despite all the frustration it apparently caused him when he lost or when he got stuck (not that he would ever _admit_it).

And so, day in and day out either the clacking of buttons, the customary Princely 'Ushishishi~' laugh, or the completely and utterly _annoying_ sound of Game music could be heard in the castle.

And to say that Xanxus was getting pissed was more than a bit of an understatement as well -he was getting_ furious_ (at the annoyance).

And so, had -finally- commissioned a few of the Varia (Mammon, Lussuria, and Levi, since Squalo wasn't there) to put an end to his 'Game(-ing) Spree'...

But how to do it...? They just couldn't figure it out. And so, the Core Varia decided to try it out (the games) -with the exception of Mammon of course, who just left it to the others.

After all, if they wanted to make him quit, they would first have to figure out why he was so absorbed in the games...

Of course, they had no idea of the magnitude of the multitude of games that were available...

And, eventually, became obsessed themselves -much to Xanxus' obvious irritation.

And so who was left to deal with this but the only person any (well, _most_) of the Core Members listened/talked to now...? (With the exception of Mammon because he had to leave halfway through for a mission.)

Why, poor little Mika, of course! So now she had to get _all_ of them to stop obsessing with the games...

Levi was 'addicted' to action/rpg type games, Lussuria was addicted to the Yaoi and 'H' games they had out (for Girls -which meant that he played as a girl going for a guy for the normal 'H' games), and Belphegor -last but not least- was addicted to the very RPG type game she had introduced him to...

_Pokemon_.

So, how to get Lussuria off the Yaoi games first and foremost...? she wondered.

Actually, she might be able to get Lussuria to let her 'borrow' a few, and slowly draw him away from the games with something more important -like real _live_ men... or, rather, fresh _corpses_ of men... {Remember, Luss is a... necrophiliac(?)...}

The only problem was to find a good enough corps-er... _man_... that would suit Lussuria's taste well enough to be able to draw him away from the games...

So she asked around the castle for Lussuria's 'type', and, eventually, found someone (a guy of course).

The poor man was a tourist with his friends...

She had a distinct feeling that his friends would be going home without him, as she herself was not at all sure what to do for this.

Somehow, though, she managed to get Lussuria off the games without even having to try, when he smelled something burning...

Apparently a few of the lower officers had gotten hungry and had tried their hand at cooking to make some food for themselves in the kitchen -key word: _tried_. Which, really, explained the lingering smell of burning charcoal for the next month or so in the kitchen...

As for Levi, all she had to do was tell him that 'Boss' needed him...

After that he swore off games entirely (she_ really_ didn't want to know what games he had been playing that he had had to 'hide' from them -not including the action/rp games, of course) and things went back to normal... Well, somewhat.

Bel was _still_ 'addicted' to his games though...

But, luckily, Mammon was back by now (though Squalo wasn't), and they were able to get back to planning -without Mika, since _her_ 'job' was apparently done now that Lussuria and Levi were off the 'hook' and were with Mammon to plan...

She shrugged it off, figuring it would be fine that way -besides, Bel was the most psychotic of them all, so she didn't really want to get in trouble with _him_ let alone _Xanxus_...

(Amazingly she had gotten a gruff 'Good Work Scum' from the Boss as she had passed by after that, though she couldn't be sure if it was just her imagination since, when she had turned back, he had been drinking again and had shot her a death-glare for staring -not to mention the irritated 'What the_fuck_ do you want?' snarl she'd received... Needless to say she got out of that room, and _fast_.)

In any case, after another few days of failed attempts, the trio decided that they would just have to steal the games from his room, and proceeded to sneak over to the Prince's room.

Unfortunately, as they were about to open the door, said Prince came out, but...

_Without_ the game system?(!) they gasped mentally. They had all gotten used to seeing him everywhere with it by now, after all -even in the large 'private' Varia Core-only pool/bath {think Onsen}.

"B-B-Bel! W-What a surprise~! W-We were just passing your room -not doing anything _remotely_suspicious of course...!" stammered Lussuria as Levi froze beside him, solid as rock (actually, he was somewhat crouching still and in shock). Mammon -or what they had _thought_ was Mammon- was actually an Illusion, and had disappeared without a trace almost as soon as the Prince had appeared -Mammon had already figured it would be futile, after all.

"Ushishishi~? The Prince has no idea what you're doing, but the Prince is busy -so move out of the way~" he said, his grin dropping into a frown as he walked around them when Levi didn't move after another five seconds...

They were quite glad that he was over the games, but... what had caused him to stop playing all of a sudden? they wondered. Had he beaten the game or what?

But, they decided not to push it, since they were unsure of the effects the question would bring, and let it go.

Well, until Bel showed up with it again the next day...

"B-B-But Bel-! I thought... You... the Game..." the duo (excluding Mammon of course) gaped as they stared at Bel, who was sprawled out on the couch playing the game -_silently_ this time.

"Ushishishi~ What, you thought I was _done_?" he asked, "The batteries just ran out yesterday, so I had to get a charger for it~" he grinned as they just stared helplessly, gaping in shock.

Xanxus gave up, seeing as he was at least playing quietly now, and payed Mammon for at least 'convincing' him not to play so loudly anymore...

Well, he took it out of Levi and Lussuria's pay, so... technically _they_ were the ones paying him...

**~Il Fine**

* * *

**Edit-4/19/11':** Editted! The Omake is now 1,468 Words, while the chapter is 7,622 Words! =3

Three more chapters to go before I can update Woruba, whoot! After that, I plan to look through the first few chapters again just in case~

I do have the time, after all~~ But, after that, it's right back to REGULAR UPDATES! YAY~~! *cheers*


	8. Squalo Returns! Off To Namimori, Japan!

**Stuck in the KHR! World**

A Katekyo Hitman Reborn! Fanfiction

_by_ **Murasaki Argenteria**

* * *

7. **Squalo Returns! To Namimori, Japan!**

* * *

To say that things went smoothly after that was a bit of an under- er... _over_statement...

Things probably _could_ have gone better, but...

Unfortunately, things sort of just seemed to have snowballed a bit uncontrollably, and, within twenty-four hours or so, the entire castle knew of Prince the Ripper's dark mood -in fact, pretty much all the inhabitants of the castle were avoiding the adolescent assassin as much as possible, though, thankfully, he ended up taking his 'frustration' out on his games rather than actual people.

Well, he was on a bit of a losing streak, but for whatever reason, he had yet to utterly annihilate the games -no, he wasn't _that_ stupid! After all, if he broke them now, he wouldn't be able to take his 'revenge' out on the imbecilic Peasant Torture Devices (the games he just couldn't seem to beat at the moment) and gloat afterward when he finally beat the above-said 'Torture Devices', though he never said so out loud (after all, it just wasn't very _Princely_ to whine, now was it?).

So, instead of destroying the Portable Peasant Entertainment, he broke priceless vases {oh the irony} and other useless works of 'art', and, though he never left a single trace at the scene of the crime, they all seemed to know that it had been him anyways.

After a while, though, his laughed seemed to take on an almost darker, more insane-sounding (if that were even possible) quality -and even if he _wasn't_ in the same hall, all those within (and sometimes outside) hearing distance would shiver, almost unconsciously...

It was the laugh of a very twisted, dark, homicidal, and angry individual (a Prince, in this case), and it was _not_ a pretty sound. (Well, to those that still had a shred of sanity left to them, anyways -even those of the less sane variety found the laugh rather disturbing, and _that_ was saying something!)

It was a laugh that promised a _very_ slow, and very, very, _very_ painful death by torture to those that heard it...

And even _Xanxus_ was a bit creeped out by it though he never really said anything -besides, he considered it quite a good thing that the Storm had become even more better-suited to his 'position' as Storm Guardian (after all, those little pipsqueak-'runts' {Tsuna and his Guardians} were weak and foolish trash, and would be annihilated almost immediately anyways).

The fact was, quite honestly, that _his_ laughs were just as bad though, if not _worse_. Over time, he had started to randomly burst out in maniacal laughter, whether while eating, walking -sorry, _stalking_- down the hall, in his room-

The _bath_room...

Yes, the overall atmosphere at the castle was rather morbidly dark due to the demented minds of two (possible more than the two) people, and, though it didn't seem to affect Mika as much as it did the others, she was just as disturbed by it as the next person (or, rather, assassin, seeing as Varia Castle was a housing point of the Vongola Famiglia's best assassins)...

Even Mammon would momentarily stop counting his money and didn't bother charging the demented prince whenever he lost count -_again_- due to the bothersome laughs, so to say that things had become 'dark' was, quite honestly, a _huge_ understatement.

Hell could not even _begin_ to describe the atmosphere at the Castle...

* * *

Mika sighed once again, shivering slightly. Over the last few days, the castle seemed to have grown more ominous that she would've thought possible (especially considering where they were), and she had a disturbingly distinct feeling that she knew the reason why...

Well, maybe not _why_ exactly, but she just couldn't shake off the feeling that it had something to do with their resident Prince, Belphegor.

But, at least the news that Squalo had returned (okay, maybe not _news_, seeing as no one was ever really inclined to _tell_ her things -aside from Lussuria, but he didn't really count- plus she could easily hear his 'greeting' all the way from her room (he had been somewhere at the castle gates at the time, too, which was no easy feat, though considering who it was doing the yelling...) even with the numerous soundproof walls and hallways between them) seemed to lighten things up a bit.

Of course, it may have had something to do with the fact that the very first sign of his return had been the blatant(ly loud) words: "VOOOOOOOOOOIIIIIII!(!)! WHAT THE HELL IS UP WITH THIS FUCKING CASTLE?(!) IT'S _FREEZING_ IN HERE!(!)"

And, to be quite honest, she really had to agree -though it wasn't like _she_ could (or ever _would_ be able to) say anything to Bel and get away with it...

Especially with the way he was recently -not unlike the attitude of a boy at the cusp of puberty, actually... Except maybe for the fact that he had been a licensed (by the Varia) killer ever since the age of eight, and had been an assassin for... oh, _seven_ or so years already...? (And that was at the very_least_!)

Yeah, that may have had something to do with it...

Though, much to her (and everyone else's) surprise, the next morning (Squalo had returned at night, thus waking her -and over half the castle- with his yells... of _course_), Bel seemed to be in a _much_improved mood, "Ushishishi"-ing like Heaven had fallen into hell and he was the new Lucifer -now crowned God or Satan or whatever deity people around the world believed ruled the heavens/hell(s) nowadays...

But back to main point -the depressingly creepy atmosphere had _completely_ dissipated! Almost as if overnight... which was probably the case now that she thought about it...

And, for some reason, Lussuria had decided to let her sleep in that morning, too, though he had managed to call her in time for there still to be some breakfast left (an all-American breakfast, she realized rather blearily as she sat down in her seat -which was now between Lussuria and Squalo for some inane reason- as she stared down at her plate).

{The seating arrangement is now: Xanxus at the head, Levi and Squalo at either side of him in their regular seats, only with Mammon sitting between Levi and Bel, and Mika between Squalo and Lussuria in case anyone remembers what the previous arrangements were}

The 'Weird Machine Thingie', as she called it out loud and in the presence of others before someone so_kindly_ 'informed' her that it was, as she already knew it to be, a Gola Mosca, was standing off to the side, somewhere near the corner of the table and off to the side, between Levi and Xanxus, though a little further back -a machine didn't need to eat after all.

So it was with the Mosca standing there, near its encoded 'Master' as they all ate (or rather, _Mika_ ate and the others finished eating), that Xanxus suddenly (or _finally_, in the mind of a certain fifteen-soon-to-be-sixteen year old girl) gave the announcement.

"We're going to Japan, so hurry up and finish packing, _trash_," he said, scowling and making Mika look up -after all, he wasn't yelling. He wasn't yelling, and he wasn't pissed (though he always seemed to be somewhere between irked and irritated at the very least), so he had to be talking to her, seeing as he seemed to be so -well, _somewhat_- calm.

"Eh?" She asked rather intelligently as she blinked up at the Varia Boss (she was kind of surprised, after all, she hadn't thought that it would be so _soon_... Plus, no one had told her anything about having to pack anything _or_ about going anywhere for that matter... Eh, oh well).

"Ah, that's _right_, Mika-chan~!" Lussuria gushed, "We're going on a... _trip_... to Japan! And I thought you'd want to come as well~" he beamed at her, while mentally congratulating himself on coming up with such a smart answer to the question he knew she was probably going to ask.

"... Okay," she said after a while, nodding slowly as she did, and ending the conversation...

Or... so she _thought_.

"Oh, and the shark-scum -" the Varia boss started, sneering at the nickname though in a slightly smirk-ish way (and, for once -and rather intelligently- said 'shark-scum' ignored the jibe), "-will be teaching you how to defend yourself," he finished.

She blinked, and, for a moment, pretended to be- oh, no, wait...

She _was_ confused.

"But... I thought... Lussuria was supposed to be teaching me...?" she blinked, seeing as Lussuria had already started teaching her a little 'self-defense' as ordered by the normally angst- er... _angry_... looking Varia Boss.

At this, said Boss just scowled, "You're not going to able to defend yourself with just a _few_ skills like that," he sneered, almost as if he thought she was an absolute nincompoop for not realizing something so obvious...

Which he probably did... well, knowing Xanxus' personality, anyways, she realized as she silently waited for him to go on, seeing as he so obviously wasn't finished speaking (and it was _never_ a good idea to interrupt an assassin that could kill you sooner than you could scream for help -especially seeing how she was surrounded by assassins and was at least six miles from the closest 'help' she would probably be able to receive).

"You'll learn to be able to block a bullet -or another sword- at the very least," he continued, scowling. "The _trash_," he said -and in plural form, seeing as, in this case, he was talking about Lussuria and Mammon- "won't be there to protect you all the time," he growled in a tone that said 'Disobey and you're screwed (i.e. _Dead_ for those of you who are absolute idiots... Which means _all_ of you)'.

This girl was _really_ stupid, wasn't she? he thought irritably, taking another swig of his morning liquor. Well, at least she didn't _whine_, he thought, as he watched her take this in and nod absently.

"You're... right," she said, frowning as she thought about it, though Xanxus just snorted -as if he was_ever_ wrong! "Thanks... Boss...?" she said, seeing as she didn't really know what she was supposed to call him. No one had ever said his name in her presence for one, secondly, everyone else called him some form of 'Boss'. {i.e. 'Fucking Boss' or 'Bossu~~' or- well, you all get the picture, right?}

It wasn't like she'd actually really _interacted_ with him at all since she'd gotten here... Well, except when he ordered her to go get something for her, but then, those didn't really require a response, did they? After all, when Xanxus told you to do something, you _did it_. No if, and's, or but's allowed -it was do or die, after all.

Meanwhile, Xanxus just continued to scowl -though, for some reason, there seemed to be a slightly smug air about him (more than the usual, anyways).

If only _all_ his subordinates were this compliant...

* * *

On the other hand, one Belphegor -otherwise known as Prince the Ripper, or, just 'the Prince'- was grinning quite happily, to say the least, as he fiddled with the real and fake halves of his Vongola Storm Ring...

Apparently the reason as to why he had been so upset before had been quite simple when one really thought about it.

One- he was an assassin, born and bred to kill. Second- he had not killed anyone as of late (unfortunately Lussuria and mammon had both threatened him with... _stuff_... if he 'scarred' the female peasant in any way -plus he had recently become... _preoccupied_... with his 'games'... And no, not the 'usual' ones, so he hadn't been able to let off any real 'steam' seeing as vases didn't really satisfy him nearly as much as 'breaking' a live human did), and he'd been itching for a fight for a while now, really...

So, in the end, the adrenaline at the thought of facing an opponent 'worthy' of the Prince (or close to it -_just _barely- seeing as the current Vongola Decimo candidates were brats -not the Varia of course, he meant that Tuna kid and his 'play-Guardians'... Seriously, who named their kid after a freaking _fish?_{Extra: Somewhere in Namimori, a certain brunette sneezed, accidentally pissing off the bully that had him up by his collar, when said Bully got sneezed on. Luckily, Tsuna's Guardians came to the rescue...! Well, _some_ of them, anyways} ) somehow managed to get rid of -almost all- the negativity from his mind.

Of course, he had -_finally_- realized that part of all it had been because he had not gotten any shiny and princely things as of late, and, though the fake half of the Vongola Storm Ring was a fake, it was_still_ (made of, at the very least) high quality material worthy of the Prince that he was~

(Though he _did_ plan to get the other half of the Real Ring, of course~ _Ushishishi_...)

Needless to say, he had completely forgotten about the 'minor' trauma he had caused by stealing Mika's first kiss, though, luckily for them both, Mika's mind had shut down and had made her 'force-forget' all about the kiss and the incident that surrounded it, making her (mind) -self believe that it had never happened.

And thus, one mi- er, major... problem had been solved... _kind_ of.

On the _other_ hand, Mika now had _another_ problem to deal with...

Lussuria had, somehow -and for whatever _reason_- hidden her Varia Uniform with the exception of the pants that went with it and the underclothes she had worn under it, seeing as she could still wear_those_ safely without being openly 'targeted'.

_Apparently_, he had thought that she 'shouldn't be wearing that coat' while they were in Japan seeing as it would single her out to the Mafia-related people overseas, and he and Mammon would not be able to protect her (as Xanxus had pointed out earlier) twenty-four-seven, seeing as _they_ were actually there for work.

So far, though, they had successfully (or so they thought) kept the 'worst' of the information from her, though she had taken what information they _had _allowed (or rather, 'slipped') her completely in stride.

His little girl was _so_ strong~~! Luss had sobbed mentally, becoming teary-eyed at the thought once more.

The _poor_ girl! he had thought. Her past must have been _terrible_ for her to think of all this as normal...!

And so it was, that yet_ another_ false misconception had been construed by the effeminate assassin...

Figured.

* * *

Meanwhile, in Mika's room, she was packing all the clothes she had bought with Luss and a few outfits and other things that she liked (pretty much everything that she had bought, as well as several outfits from the wardrobe, as -luckily for her- Lussuria had allowed her to pack her own luggage at the very least), though she _was_ still rather upset about the whole Varia Uniform thing (mentally, anyways -even_if_ she knew exactly why he had done it).

It still irked her, though, seeing as it was almost as if they didn't really want her to be one of them...

Well, maybe they _didn't_, she acceded -but she could still _help_...!

_Somewhat_...

Okay, so (_maybe_) compared to them, she wasn't quite at good as fighting, but...

Okay, scratch that, she was _nowhere_ near their prowess... But she _had_ trained enough with both Luss, and, though it was only a few classes, Squalo, who had grudgingly told her that if she could keep up with the training, she would at _least _be able to match him in a training spar by the end of the year. (He still held back -a lot- in those though, so she couldn't be sure if that was any good -_especially_considering that he never removed his 'training weights' when he sparred her, so that he could at _least_get 'a little practice' in while he trained her).

Well, she was sure she had learned enough to keep her own against that bastard Mochida at the very least...! (She REALLY hated that guy. Sexist, narcissistic -_idiotic-_ bastard...)

Although, if it were _Yamamoto_... She really wasn't sure she'd be able to do anything about that -after all, even though Squalo didn't know it, he would lose the title of Sword Emperor to that 'brat' _very_soon...

_Well, whatever_, she thought, as she finished packing. She still had a day or two before they actually left...

Although, at _that_ thought, she frowned at her luggage.

_Maybe_ she had packed a bit _too_ much...?

_Nah_, she thought, shaking her head, Xanxus and Lussuria were more likely to have even _more_ luggage than she would themselves.

Besides, even if the biggest suitcase was almost as tall as_ she_ was (it went almost up to her shoulders), the other two were normal sized.

She would be wearing her bag as always, of course, but...

Now that she _did _think about it...

Where the hell _did_ they get such large suitcases anyways...? she thought, sweating as she stared at the dark, earthen brown semi-hard/soft covered luggage case...

Well, whatever, she thought with a sigh, stretching as she grabbed the practice sword (real metal, though) that Squalo had given her, and jogged out to the sparring room.

She had best get to the room before Squalo barged in (as most of them did when they had a problem -_usually _Squalo- or were just bored -which, of course, was mainly _Bel_-) and yelled her ears off...

Apparently the softest the male could talk was what a _normal_ person would considered 'speaking' loudly.

It really _did_ make one wonder how he completed those silent assassin missions without getting caught...

Well, he would probably have killed them _before_ they could scream, or yell, or even_ shout_, she thought with a slight mental laugh -and it would just be _so_ like him, too...

* * *

Squalo scowled, arms crossed as he tapped his foot impatiently, watching the clock on the wall. He had stopped self-training almost_ ten_ (seven, in reality) minutes ago to get ready for the damn_ brat_...

Well, he knew that there was still another six or seven minutes or so left before the appointed time for their now-daily 'training sessions', but he still didn't get just _why_ that bastard of a boss wanted _him_ of all people to teach the brat -okay, so_ yeah_, he was the Sword Emperor...

But he was the_ Sword Emperor_! He had better things to do than to baby-sit a kid a like her!

He shouldn't have to waste his time on some stupid little chit of a girl like her! She was -what, _twelve_? Thirteen at most! {Actually, fifteen to sixteen in this world =P}

He growled (having_ just_ started to pace impatiently), when the door slid open (it was a Japanese style dojo/training-room, since he had remodeled it, having discovered that they were the most comfortable and accommodating styled rooms for sword-training (plus, it cost less to maintain)) to reveal said _brat_, who just peeked in and blinked at him.

"You're _late!_" he snapped -actually, no, she wasn't, but he was feeling rather irritable, so let's just have it end at that...

* * *

"You're_ late!_" the silver haired shark practically snarled, scowling rather deeply at her.

And, though she knew for a fact that she _wasn't_ -or she would have bumped into him in the halls on her way over earlier, as, surprisingly, Squalo was actually a pretty punctual person- she let it go. Best not to upset the 'shark' at any rate. (It was _always_ a bad idea to get on his bad side, and disagreeing with him on such a minor thing just wasn't worth it, quite honestly.)

"Sorry," she said simply before walking in. She wasn't sorry at all, though maybe a little apprehensive.

"Whatever," he grumbled -or, well, she was pretty_ sure_ she'd heard him grumble- before he glared (stared, in his case) and frowned at the practice sword in her hand before scowling again.

"Put that away," he snapped, "You won't need it anymore," he snapped, before picking up a spare blade (_his_, of course) and tossing it to her when she finally moved to do as he'd ordered.

Surprised, she caught the -luckily for her- sheathed sword (and _yes_, an actual sword), and stareded back at him confusedly, "Huh?" she blinked back at him rather intelligently.

Squalo just scowled in response.

_Stupid Brat_...

* * *

"Oh my-!" Lussuria gasped, frowning when he found Mika all battered as she was -even though it was, what, the _nth_ time? (Or was it the _xth_...?)- and hurrying over.

"Darling, what _happened_(?)!" he asked, looking rather aghast, despite the fact that he probably already _knew_ why...

"...Sparring," she mumbled with a light sigh, rather used to it all now -in the beginning, she had had to be found by Lussuria, because she wasn't used to so much pain, but _now_? She could take the pain well enough to -at _least_- get to Lussuria _before_ passing out or falling onto her ass/bed with a slight groan.

This time, though, for once, she was holding up well enough to not need any assistance walking, though she _was_ bleeding in some places...

Usually it was just a few bruises and/or discoloring or markings.

Lussuria frowned, "_Really_, that Squalo! He really shouldn't treat spars like actual _battles_-!" he huffed before proceeding to pull out the First Aid kit he had taken to carrying around almost _everywhere_ now (originally he would have just left it in his room, but ever since Mika had started taking 'lessons' from Squalo...)

"Besides, you're a_ girl(!) -_what if he permanently scarred your beautiful face?(!)" he exclaimed, puffing his cheeks out a little as he tsked, applying some disinfectant in case any of the bruised skin broke enough for bacteria to get through before he started to take care of the few actually bleeding scratches she had. A few were a bit nasty seeing as the blood had dried and was sticking to her clothes, but...

She winced slightly as the moist cotton touched her face, trying to hold back a slight hiss when it moved to touch the edge of her mouth, where her lip had split slightly from a fall, when she had -quite idiotically (and she would admit that)- tripped over her own feet. (She had made the elementary mistake of trying to defend while she'd dodged at the same time.)

Christ's _sake!_ she thought. It wasn't like she was _Tsuna_...!

Actually, she wasn't even_ religious_, so why the hell had she used 'Christ's sake'...? she wondered about half a second after she'd thought the sentence about a certain dame-Tsuna. She was mainly an atheist, anyways -though the correct term for her might've been 'agnostic' rather than atheist...

After all, it wasn't like she didn't completely disbelieve that higher entities might exist -no, she was just_sceptical_ of it. Yes, true, deities _might_ exist, but then again they might _not_, if one really thought about it -or, rather, that was how it was in _her_ opinion...

* * *

Elsewhere, in Namimori (Japan), Tsuna sneezed, '_why does it feel like someone I don't even know was talking about me...?_' he wondered, before a certain Spartan Infant/Tutor kicked him upside the head for getting distracted from his work again...

* * *

Eventually, Lussuria finished the wound-cleaning and bandaging (there was very little need of it seeing as she really wasn't bleeding that much, though since he'd bandaged _all_ the wounds, it was a bit hard to move, though it was probably only because Lussuria didn't want the skin to heal oddly -her left hand was bandaged almost like Lussuria's since it was easier for him wrap it that way, than to just wrapthe cut).

Once that was done, Lussuria had decided that Mika needed to be taught how to wrap bandages for herself (since she failed at it, though she _could_ wrap, she couldn't actually_ end_ it -that and it was sometime just a little too loose, making it slip off just a bit _too_ easily) before they proceeded to their next training session.

They would just exercise again, to keep their bodies limber.

She still couldn't do any push-ups or pull-ups -though she could at least do _one_ full push-up before her arms collapsed.

She was getting stronger, and that they couldn't deny...

For a _normal_ person, anyways, though she was still weak as far as anything to do with physical exercises -except walking/jogging, she could keep moving without any breaks until she got hungry or just got tired enough to be falling half-asleep as she stood.

She couldn't run for long distance or for too long, and she wasn't very fast, but she was average as far as it all went.

Unfortunately, though, 'average' just wasn't good enough _here_.

And, for the next day and a half (Luss and Squalo had both decided that they would give her time off right before the appointed time to rest so she didn't look like such a mess when they got there (thank_god_! ...she_ really_ needed to get out of that bad habit of hers...)) she trained until she collapsed -which probably (or at least _normally_) wasn't healthy, but, then again, the Varia was nowhere _near_ normal- and slept through much of the time alloted to her before the day of departure.

"VOOOOOOOOOOOIIIIII! GET THE FUCK UP!" was the _lovely_ wake-up call she received from a certain silver-haired 'shark', as he kicked/slammed the door to her room open.

"..." No answer. Squalo twitched, going over to the lump laying under the cover of the bed, planning to drag her out of the covers when he realized he had been ignored.

"VOOO- wait, where the hell did she go-?(!)" he started, when a tug -or rather, a quick pull- of the covered revealed...

Empty space...? Well, empty space and a haphazardly lain pillow.

From somewhere behind him, a door creaked open, and he whirled, about to start yell at the intruder, scowling, before he blinked.

_Why_ the hell was the brat just standing the-? his mind wondered before his thoughts clicked, and he froze.

Ooooh... _Right_... The brat was a _girl_, wasn't she...? he remembered, his scowl dropping into a surprised half-frown, as he just stared at the half-in, half-out of the door, and half-_naked_ (she was only being covered by a towel, for pete's sake!) girl.

"Er... S-Squa...lo?" she spoke at last, staring at the elder male with startled eyes.

"..." No response.

"Squalo...?" she called, tilting her head slightly, "SQUALO!" she called out, not quite yelling, but not as soft as she _usually_ spoke to the others.

"Huh?" he blinked, startled out of his thoughts.

"Uhm... Could you..._ leave_, please?" she asked, being more polite now that she'd (_finally_)caught his attention.

"Huh? Ah, R-Right," he started, starting to hurry out of the room, while carefully making sure that his eyes didn't wander back to her, no matter how young she looked, "And Hurry up! We're leaving soon!" he snapped rather gruffly, scratching the back of his head as he turned back -conveniently pulling out a piece of shattered glass from his hair- and standing in the doorway, before he walked out, message delivered.

To say that he was a bit flustered was a bit of an understatement, seeing as he had come to see her as a 'trainee' and not a girl in the past week or so. And, being as 'forgetful' as he was, he had completely forgotten about that important little tidbit, seeing how odd some (most) of the Varia were anyways...

In any case, it wasn't like he _wanted_ to see any part of the girl! It was rather disturbing to think of her in any way but a 'student' -besides, no need to rile up the gay-tard and the greedy little money-grubbing bastard, right?

_Right_. Besides, they technically still had an hour...

Maybe he would take a quick shower too, he thought, scowling as he remembered what had happened earlier.

Of course, it was normal, but he _really_ didn't want to arrive smelling like booze when they finally touched down in Japan -he could probably kill the security off, but...

That just drew too much attention to the Varia -and he was already _sure_ that there would be enough attention as it was...

Contrary to popular belief, Superbi Squalo was _not_ an idiot. Well, _much_ of one, anyways...

He _did_ have his bright moments.

* * *

Mika watched the silver-haired swordsman walk out with a blank look, before leaving her en-suite.

Absently, she wondered at his reaction -had he thought that she'd come out of the shower? Hah, that'd be funny, she thought, grinning as she somehow shut the bathroom door without using her hands, as she pulled the towel wrapped around herself off, while she moved the smaller one draped around her neck up to rub her hair dry.

Her head had only been dripping due to the fact that she'd cut her hair -yes, she had _cut_ it. It was now shorter, and didn't get in her eyes as much, though, as per usual, she had had to wash her hair -though, instead of taking another shower (since it had been a split decision she had made after the shower she had already taken and her hair had started sticking to her face, and was getting into her eyes) she had decided to just use a towel to keep the clippings from getting into her clothes, and had also washed only her hair -or, rather, her head.

Unlike Squalo, who, for some reason, never seemed to catch his hair on anything (Lucky Bastard), hers always seemed to get caught for some reason or other despite the fact that it wasn't even near as long as the shark's was!

Of course, luckily for her, it never seemed to happen when the others were around -if it had, she was quite sure she would've been the laughingstock of the castle for some time to come...

Not only that, washing it had been a pain to begin with, since she had to make sure _all_ of the hair on her head got washed, though, of _course_ she hadn't cut it too short (she wasn't exactly an expert with scissors though she could get along quite well when wasn't something attached to a living, breathing being), so she would probably just have Lussuria fix it for her later...

Once he got over the shock of course. As for why he hadn't gone to him in the first place, it was quite obvious that the man wouldn't 'fix' her hair unless he had no choice, so... yeah...

Oh _damn_, how _was_ she going to explain this anyways...? she thought, as she realized that she would have to find and excuse as to why she had suddenly decided to cut her hair. As previously mentioned, it had been a split-moment (and rather _rash_) decision, so she hadn't really been thinking it through.

Her hair now ended just an a few inches above the middle of her back, where it had ended before, though it was probably uneven, and she _had_ practically dunked her head in water (well, okay, so not_really_ -it was more like she had stuck it under the showerhead), before she had heard Squalo's yell, and had taken some time to prepare before she had peeked out -_just_ in case.

Of course, she had been rather surprised when Squalo seemed to freeze, eyes wide -but, as entertaining as it had been to see his expression, she hadn't wanted the water to drip onto her clothes (which had been under the towel), seeing as she had gotten semi-dressed before making the decision anyways.

She was wearing a plain baby-blue spaghetti-strap (and of course, the necessary undergarments -though one _had_ to wonder why a certain Sun Guardian had _girls_' undergarments...), and tight-ish looking indigo-grey jeans.

Unfortunately, she had to dress rather normally (or so she thought), in order not to draw any more attention to herself.

The top she had picked out the night before was resting on the dresser -which Squalo would probably have noticed had he been paying much attention, though he _obviously _hadn't (some assassin _he_ was)- which she was now walking over to, before she decided not to put it on yet, since she needed to actually finish drying her hair first -she really didn't want to drip on the shirt, on the off-chance that it was one of those really badly made shirts with washable dye (it had actually happened to her once, during a trip to China -it was then, that she had learned to _never_ trust clothes stores in the general area of Asia), as unlikely as it was...

Plus, she didn't want the material going see-through, since the spaghetti-strap she was wearing was one of those _really_ thin ones, and if both were moist enough would be able to reveal her bra -or at least the _shape_ of it- something that would no doubt be _very_ embarrassing for her.

So, she dried her hair off first before pulling the top on. It was one of those shirts that was almost dress-length with a wide, thick ruffled collar (though _too_ ruffled, thankfully) that had semi-long sleeves that purposely ended just a few inches from her wrists. It was mainly a dark grey color that almost seemed to match the jeans she wore, and was made up of three colors -going from top to bottom: dark grey, indigo, and navy blue.

And, the best thing about it (for her, anyways) was the fact that it also had pockets, though she was still going to be wearing the 'gift' (as she now considered it) that she had received from that 'nice elderly woman', or so she called her, seeing as she really had nothing else to call her by (the witch).

Oh, and she also had one of those 'puffy' hats. It was the same dark-grey as the top third of the shirt, and had a butterfly-shaped buckle/pin on one side as it's only real decoration.

The pants she was wearing, having been just a bit too long, had been 'taken in' by Lussuria, who had basically had to fold it twice and sewn it so that the folds would stay there, though he _had_ added two -surprisingly plain- silver buttons on each of the outer-sides of the fold -jsut for 'fun'.

"It adds a quite little _flair_ to those jeans, don't you think~?" had been the simple excuse he had given her -not that she minded, seeing as, for all the trouble they'd gone through, it _did_ look a lot better on her that way...

Of course, she had had to wear sneakers -which she rarely, if ever, did- but, at least these were a comfortable pair (seeing as she didn't have any 'casual' shoes here, really, except for the ones Luss had originally given her), and they seemed to work with the clothes, somehow.

Of course, that may have had something to do with the fact that they were silver, white, and grey sneakers that had, despite looking uncomfortable (they were made from rubber -soles- plastic, and cloth -for the rest). Of course, she was also wearing a pair of dark grey socks, as Lussuria had been thoughtful enough to help her find socks that would go with all the clothes she now owned here.

Plus, they didn't stand out as much as the pair that Lussuria had first given her. The shoes were black with white rubber soles, though there seemed to be bright splatters of color artistically painted over the black cloth (?) -or _whatever_ material they had been made of .

As for anything she had to bring with her, she only needed to grab her usual bag seeing as the luggage, _thankfully_, had already been taken out and was probably already waiting with the rest of the Core Varia's luggage, so she really didn't need to do much other than to show up in the 'mess hall', as she liked to call it at time seeing as it was so big (though, then again, such large dining halls were probably normal in such large buildings as the one they were in), on time.

Other than that, she really did have nothing to do, so as she left her room to make her way to the meeting point, she had ended up thinking about the castle in general...

She had yet to venture into most of the other wings of the castle, seeing as the Core Varia mainly resided in one wing, and the center was generally where they all met...

But, aside from that, she had rarely -if ever- had to wander out of the areas she was normally in -ie Mammon's rooms (if one counted his 'hidden room' where they trained), the Dining hall, Squalo's training room, _Lussuria_'s training area (which differed sometimes, but usually ranged between one of the inner gardens, Luss' workout room, or just his room in particular) and her own room.

And, because she spent most of her time with either Mammon and Lussuria compared to the others, she wasn't really surprised to see the two of them waiting for her outside said Okama's room. But, for some reason, she found the _rest_ of the Varia were there too! (The Core Members, anyways) Something that actually _did_ surprise her.

"Hurry up, trash, we're leaving," growled Xanxus, as he got up from the 'throne' that had been sitting in front of his room (when had they moved it there anyways?) and walked off, leaving Levi to carry it, as well as what looked like a large bag that was probably full of Xanxus' liquor, if she was thinking correctly. (Her guess would alter be proven correct, when Xanxus ordered Levi to fetch him a 'drink' on the plane.)

Bel laughed that creepy laugh of his, as he walked off them Mammon, and Squalo just followed his boss with a scowl.

Lussuria waited for her with a smile, though he did end up exclaiming on the way to the main entrance (they had to walk, of course), and telling her that they'd fix it on the way.

And of course, Gola Mosca was also wearing a bag similar to Levi's (for which she pitied the poor machine... and the Ninth in it), but followed silently and obediently but for the stready constant 'fshh...' of air that would be released every once in a while.

Apparently they were no longer meeting at the Mess Hall, she thought with a rather wry smile, hurrying a bit to catch up, seeing as Xanxus, at the very least had started moving away, though Lussuria was kind enough to wait for her.

* * *

At the entrance,they found two limo's waiting for them, and the group ended up being split from each other.

Gola Mosca, Xanxus, Levi, and Squalo got into the first one as Lussuria, Bel, Mammon, and Mika got into the second one.

The others were wearing the Varia Uniforms to some extent -or, at least, as they_ usually_ wore it. Which, for most of them, was a bit different from the standard dress, of course.

Mammon wore a cloak with the Varia symbol on it, and Bel and Lussuria wore their own pants rather the ones that were issued with the uniform, though, of course, Bel also wore a red and black striped shirt -and, as usual, one of his tiara-er, _crowns_...

And thus, they began the long and tedious journey to Namimori, Japan...

* * *

**A/N**: *cheers* 4,810 {Now _7,406!_ *squeal*} Words! (XD) Whoot! *munches on some of Xanxus' birthday cake*

**Xanxus**: *mutters, irritated* What the hell are you doing here anyways, scum? *scowls, and glares at authoress*

**Authoress**: *looks over innocently and 'smiles'* _Nani_? *beams* I can't wish (one of) my favorite character(s) a Happy Birthday? (^^)

**Xanxus**: ... *shivers for some 'unknown' reason* You already did... *grumbles, but otherwise gives up*

**Authoress**: *blinks* Ah, did I...? Well, I left Span-chan in charge of the Omake, so~ All's good~ *grins*

**Lussuria**: _are_, Mura-chan~ You came? *smiles* I already saved you some cake though~ ...Oh well! More for us~ *grins*

**Belphegor**: Ushishishi~ Who's the peasant? *grins*

**Authoress**: (O.o) ... (XD) BEL! *glomp-tackles prince*

**Bel**: Oof-! *gets glomped, but only stumbles back a few steps* Ushishi~ Get off me Peasant! *still grinning*

**Authoress**: Meh *sticks out tongue*

**Mammon**: *sighs* Oh great, the _weird_ one's back *mutters* I'm not doing your disclaimers unless you have money. *glares from under hood*

**Authoress**: ... *whistles innocently* Well... Actually... I was hoping the Principe-_sama_ would do it for me~ *grins* Since Only he and Squalo haven't~ (excluding Levi)

**Bel**: ...? *tilts head slightly* Ushishishi~ I'm flattered, but what about Levi?

**Authoress**: *purrs and grins, now hugging Mammon so he can't escape* He died. *nonchalant* (=D)

**Bel**: (O.o) ... *stares*

**Xanxus**: (O.o) ... *already knows this, but is still surprised (probably cuz he wasn't really paying attention last time)*

**Lussuria**: (XD) *not surprised at all*

**Mammon**: ... *doesn't care*

**Squalo**: VOOOOOOOOIIIII! WHAT'S GOIN' ON HERE! *yells, shaking entire castle, as he walks in*

**Authoress**: (O.o) *deaf now* That was... loud...

**Mammon**: Muu... If I need surgery on my ears again... *mutters about fines*

**Authoress**: ...? (=D) What?

**Mammon**: ... *still muttering*

**Xanxus**: Shut up, scum! *scowls, and throws glass at Squalo*

**Authoress**: Lol! SQUALO GOT PWNED! (XD) *squeals* XS FOREVER! :hearts:

**Xanxus**: *smirks, then hears 'XS FOREVER! and frowns* What?

**Squalo**: VOOOOIIIII! SHUT UP, BITCH! WHO ARE YOU, ANYWAYS? ! *glares, then hears and goes: (O.o) thinking: _What the-? !_*

**Authoress**: (XD) *grins* ... *blinks and tilts head, seeing Squalo's mouth move but hearing nothing* What'd he say? *points to Squalo, but hears no answer* No really what's he saying? *blinks*

**Lussuria**: ... Squalo...? *turns to Shark*

**Squalo**: *scowls* What!

**Lussuria**: I think you broke her...

**Bel**: Ushishishi~ The Shark broke the weird peasant~! *grins*

**Mammon**: *ignores them all, but pulls out a vial, and a board to write on*

**Board**: I'll fix your ears if you pay me. ~Mammon

**Authoress**: (=D) What? Why would I-? *confused, then realizes* Ooooh... So THAT's why it's so quiet! (=D) Okay!

**Mammon**: *smirks, and hands over vial, while flipping board over* Here.

**Board**: Drink it, and send me 3x an S rank payment to my account

**Authoress**: *shrugs, thinking: _Meh, I'll just have Spanner hack into Levi's account and move the money to Mammon-chan's account... later_* Got it! *takes vial and chugs it down without a thought and HEARS AGAIN! XD*

**Squalo & Xanxus**: *arguing again*

**Authoress**: Aaaaw, they're so cute together, aren't they? *grins*

**Mammon**: *smirks, happy with the profit* Yes, yes they do. *doesn't care what he's agreeing to so long as he gets his money*

**Other Varia**: ... *stop and stare*

**Authoress**: (XD) XS LOVE FOREVER! *yells*

**Varia**: *wince*

**Xanxus**: What the hell are you talking about, scum! *demands*

**Squalo**: VOOOI! BITCH! SHUT THE FUCK UP!

**Authoress**: *ignores Squalo's yelling... for now* XS is Xanxus-Squalo Love!

**Everyone**: ... *silence*

**Xanxus**: *twitches* What the fuck?

**Squalo**: *gaping like teh fishie he is! XD*

**Lussuria**: *squeals* (XD)

**Bel**: Ushishishi~! *finds this funny for some reason*

**Mammon**: *thinking of blackmail material*

**Gola Mosca**: ...

**Authoress**: (O.o) When'd Gola Mosca get here...? Well, whatever. Squalo or Bel! Please do teh disclaimer~! ^^ *holds up fire-proof board this time*

**Bel**: Ushishishi~ Well, the Prince doesn't feel like doing it so the shark can~ *grins*

**Squalo**: *scowls* VOOOIIII! I AIN'T DOING THAT, SCUM! *glares*

**Bel**: Ushishishi... *frowns* Well, I suppose the Prince is feeling benevolent~ The Prince shall read it for the Peasant~

**Authoress**: (XD) Yay! I LOVE YOU BEL! ^^ Now Please read~ :hearts: *holds up board again*

**Bel**: Ushishi~ Of course! A Prince is loved by many~ *grins*

Now, let's see... *studies board* "Murasaki Argenteria does not own KHR! Akira Amano-sensei does~" whatever that is~ That good enough for you, peasant~? Ushishishi~

**Authoress**: _Arigato_~ Bel-chan~ In any case, no OMAKE! today, sorry~ But, I _do_ have a poll up for the next KHR series that I'll work on. (=D) Of course, I will NEVER abandon my KHR babies, but, just wanted to know what should go up next this time~ ^^

_Ja, minnasan_~ See you again, desu~! ^^ *waves*

**Bel**: Ushishishi~ Who are you talking to peasant? *grins*

**Lussuria**: It's alright, Bel-chan~ You don't need to know~ _Ne_, Murasaki-chan~? *smiles*

**Authoress**: (XD) In the words of the Undertaker (Kuroshitsuji): "Ushi, shi, shi~!" And, Grell the Shinigami: " -DESU!"(XD)

**Xanxus**: *scowls* If you're done, get out already, scum! *growls*

**Authoress**: After you promise to give me Squ-chan for the next segment~ :hearts: *beams*

**Squalo**: VOOOIII! WHO DO YOU THINK YOU ARE YOU B-

**Xanxus**: *scowls* Fine, whatever, take him! Just go! *grabs Squalo by the hair and tosses him towards Authoress*

**Squalo**: VOOOIII! YOU SHITTY BOSS! *yells, but gets ignored*

**Authoress**: ... *evil glint in eye* I can do whatever I want to him...? *grins sadistically*

**Xanxus**: *shivers slightly* Yeah, yeah. Whatever, just go! *shoos authoress and sharkie away* Get out!

**Squalo**: *spluttering*

**Authoress**: YES! *cheers* Love ya Xan~! *calls back, as dragging the next poor victi- I mean SHARKIE! to his doom- I mean... next... job! Yeah, job!*

**Mammon**: ... *senses a great blackmail oppurtunity* Oy, wait! I'm coming with you! *flies after*

**Lussuria**: Hmn... I wonder where Levi went...? *looks around*

**Authoress**: *pops back in and startles everyone* Oh, almost forgot -don't bother looking for Levi. I borrowed (*cough*stole for a bit*cough*) a certain someone's... eh... 'Pit of Eternal Doom' and tossed -well, kicked, really- him in. (=D) Okay, now that that's done...

Bye nows~! ^^ *waves and disappears off to base*

**Squalo**: *screams fading as authoress and sharkie gets closer to 'base'*

**Bel**: ...Ushishishi... That was... certainly interesting... *comments, still grinning* She should come by more often~ :hearts:

**Xanxus**: ... *twitches, and glares*

**Bel**: Ushishishi~ *somehow ignores the Boss's glare*

**Lussuria**: _Mou_~ Cheer up, already Boss! Enjoy the day! It's your Birthday toda-well, not really, but it's your party!

**Xanxus**: ... *just grunts and downs his liquor*

**Bel**: Ushishishi~ :hearts: *grin*

* * *

Oh! Almost forgot! ^^ I managed to fit Tsu-kun and Reborn in there in case you didn't notice! XD Oh, and I plan to update soon, cuz...

Dun-dundundun~! It's (finally) the beginning of the Varia Arc! XD

**Squalo**: VOOOIIII! WHAT THE HELL ARE YOU DOING WITH THA-? ! *struggles to get away and runs in front of authoress half-naked*

**Authoress**: (O..o) ... *fangasms*

**Mammon**: *flies after only to be hit by the blood spray* ...You're footing the cleaning bills...

**Authoress**: (-_-) *nods and holds bloody nose* ngeh (Okay)

**Squalo**: *still running and screaming* I'M NOT WEARING THAT DAMNED- *gets cut off*

* * *

**Authoress**: =D The suspense is killin' ya, isn't it? XD So, just what is Squalo being forced to wear? And will we FINALLY meet the Vongola tenth? Wait and see! Next time on KHR: Stuck in the KHR! World! Chapter 8: (When) In Namimori...

(Chapter title subject to change)

**Edit(4/23/11'):** HA! Two more chapters! =D Lol, and again, I've somehow managed to fix and lengthen the chapters again! Whoot! (O)b

Lol. You can probably tell that there's no OMAKE this time around, but, there _was_ a hint of a surprise coming up in the next chapter for those that haven't seen/read this before. For that of you that _do_know... SHHHH! Be vewy, vewy, quiet! *does Elmer Fudd impression*

*grin* Yeah, a bit hyped up on tea and sugar, but... At this rate, I should be able to get 8 and 9 up soon, so I can work on Woruba's 3rd Chapter, so I can get it up before break's over~ =3

After that, it's back to the regular updates!

Which'll definately be more frequent than they used to be! =3 It may be a bit slower than usual, but it'll still be more frequent than the other fics I've got up aside from Woruba, that, I can swear! =D So, please look forward to everything!

Oh, yes, and I'll be closing the poll soon~ The votes have been tallied, and the pairings decided (at least most of it). =P I probably shouldn't have put too many choices, lol! But, I've learned from my mistakes, aaaand, I shall stop rambling before I bore ya all t'death~

_jane~~_

**Haru**: See you again, desu~!

**Authoress**: GODDAMNIT HARU! *chases after intruder*

**Haru**: HAHI~~! WHY ARE YOU SO MEAN TO HARU?(!)

**Authoress**: HOW THE FUCK DID YOU GET IN HERE?(!)

**Haru**: \Gasp! *stops* How could you use such vulgar language, desu~!

Oh, and I got in cuz the door was open, and Haru was curious! *beam*

**Authoress**: *goes into amy-mode, and pulls out Amy hammer (from Sonic) and hits Haru outa the ball-park* GET OUT!

**Haru**: Haru's flying off again~~! {lame Pokemon joke}

**Spanner**: ... *watches all the drama, while unwrapping another sucker, thinking: _Yup, it works..._* I think I'll end things here before she goes into overtime again... *ends chapter*


	9. The Varia Arrives! When in Japan

**Stuck in the KHR! World**

A Katekyo Hitman Reborn! Fanfiction

_by_ **Murasaki Argenteria**

* * *

8. **The Varia Arrives! When in Japan...**

* * *

Unfortunately for Mika, even on the plane, she was still forced to 'train', though, of course, they wouldn't let her unsheathe the sword (after all, they didn't want her to break something important on the jet -it was expensive! not to mention way too dangerous, seeing as she could still technically be considered 'inexperienced'), at least, not on-board the sleek black jet that was -somehow- able to fit all of them on board, with extra space, though it looked like a normal -if sleek, black, and _slighter_ larger than normal- private plane.

Of course, upon first sight, she had ended up staring for a quite a while. Why? Well, it wasn't really due to the color, or shiny sleekness. Nope, it was because...

Well, because of the Varia Logo painted on it.

After all, _seriously_?(!) They were on an _undercover mission_, and they used the jet _with the freaking Varia symbol on it!_

She honestly couldn't believe her eyes...

Eventually, though, she had to stop gaping and get on -courtesy of a _very_ kind and 'polite' Xanxus.

("What the hell are you staring at, scum? Get _on_ already! We don't have all fucking day!" he had actually snapped at her, as the others were boarding when he had noticed that she had _still_ been standing there.)

Forcing her to snap out of her, eh... 'reverie', one could suppose... Well, unless there was another word for it anyway...

In any case, the entire trip had basically been more training for her. Joy.

_Now_ she knew why they had given her so much time off before the trip to rest for so long.

* * *

At last, they arrived. Mika had been too tired to really do anything, so she'd hit the sack almost as soon as they'd gotten to the hotel -even though it was mid-noon by now.

Surprisingly, they had gotten through security with no trouble at all, and were at the hotel they were staying at, and had an entire _floor_ reserved for them so that the Varia could choose whatever rooms they wished -Xaxnus taking first pick (meaning: the best room), of course.

She had completely forgotten about the 'Lambo' episode, having fallen asleep halfway through the car-ride to the hotel, and. having fallen asleep as soon as she had allowed her body to collapse onto the bed in the room she had chosen (one of the more simple ones, but still ornate nonetheless -though that may have been due to the fact that she had just chosen the first empty room she'd found), which, of course, had been almost as soon as she'd gotten_ to_ the room.

She hadn't even _bothered_ to do anything with her luggage or even to change her clothes -though, unsurprisingly, she found her luggage waiting just inside the door of her temporary residence when she woke up the next morning.

It didn't even seem to bother her that she saw none of the others in the hotel all day, as she moved things around to her taste, and unpacked most of her belongings, after taking a relaxing shower and bath in the room's pleasantly large en-suite.

Then again, she _was_ still a bit tired the first half of the day and she had been slow to wake up, thanks to the damned jet-lag that had kept her sleeping half the day away, not including the day before.

But, by the time night had finally fallen, she'd begun to grow rather suspicious, and had started to wish that she had payed more attention the day before after all, rather than giving into sleep like she had...

_Wait_. She had fallen asleep on the car, but... who had been sitting next to her...? she thought, freezing, as she tried to remember the seating arrangements the day of arrival...

_Crap..._ she thought, frowning when she couldn't recall anything but Lussuria shaking her gently awake after getting on the car. Well, whatever, she thought, dismissing it all, she'd figure it out later and deal with it respectively, she thought as she went back to practicing with the sword Squalo had bequeathed her, and rid all thoughts from her mind.

She had already finished Lussuria's exercises as a warm-up for her sword-training.

As much as she would've liked to take the day off and just be lazy, she knew that Squalo would know_immediately_ if she didn't practice daily, and the resulting yells were always worse than whatever extra training he would've devised and forced her to go through as well in order to 'catch up'.

* * *

Rowdy laughter and familiar voices drifting down the hall made her look up, startled.

But, of course, she saw nothing, seeing as she was in her room -which was half dark, since none of the lights were on with the exception of the slight glow of the mood-lights, as she pulled her headphones down, pausing the song in the middle.

"..." She frowned, opening her door to peek out of it. It sounded like...

They had just come back from something...? she thought, confused for a moment, before she realized what she _should_ have realized far earlier than she had today.

The _Vongola_! They must have gotten in touch with Tsuna and the others! She thought, panicking a bit mentally, though she did her best to show a poker face...

Something she was actually good at... with the exception of two moods: humiliation and anger...

Unfortunately, tears always sprung to her eyes -willing or not- when she got extremely angry or frustrated at something, or when she was burning with humiliation.

Actually, that was probably mostly due to her 'anger', as well...

Luckily, nothing had happened so far to cause her to 'break down' (in her mind), though she had mastered the art of holding the tears back long enough til she was alone (for the most part) by now, at least...

* * *

The Varia laughed, jibing and needling, as they talked down to each other and about the Vongola 'brats'. The trash that they were going to utterly _annihilate_ in the up-coming Ring Battles.

Gola Mosca followed, silent but for the occasional 'hiss' of air that it would release as it followed them.

There was a slight stop when they saw a door move, though, and a newly familiar head peeked out of the room curiously.

"Where'd you guys go...?" asked Mika, her now shorter, three-inches-beneath-shoulder-length hair moving a little as she tilted her head a bit at them.

"..." There was slight silence as the Varia tried to come up with something for the girl. They had forgotten all about her in the resulting rush of adrenaline after meeting the 'brat's. Plus, she wasn't going to be included in the Ring battles anyways so the less said the better.

After all, why bother with the details as of yet? Especially since she wasn't going to be part of the 'conflict'?

Or so they _thought_...

* * *

There was about half a minute's worth of awkward silence, before Lussuria and Mammon decided to answer. The two knew her well enough that they knew the silence would make her a bit suspicious, but they tried anyways. And _she_ pushed it back to the outermost edges of her mind, as they 'answered' her question -even if, in her mind, and at the moment, not quite truthfully...

"Er... well, Mika-chan~ You were so tired, we didn't want to bother you darling~~!" Lussuria twittered, looking just mildly panicked as he wracked his brain for a good 'answer' that wouldn't reveal anything, but wasn't a total lie. (Needless to say, he was failing... And badly.)

"We've decided to enroll you at one of the local School Systems," intruded Mammon in an effort to save them all, though it caused more silence and blank looks at him than it should have -_idiots_, he thought. Ignoring the others, he continued to gaze calmly, and steadily at Mika, who, for all that she could not see into the infant's eyes, seemed to accept this with a slight nod as she gazed back with just as even a cautious stare.

"Oh. Really?" she asked in response, tilting her head slightly, "Why?" she asked, blinking at the entire Varia now.

"Uhm..." There was a slight silence as the rest of the Varia took this as a cue that they should either shut up, or help supply an excuse. Luckily, Lussuria had opened his mouth before the (idiot) Prince could.

"M-Maa, Mika-chan, it's come to my -er, _our_- attention that," Lussuria started, almost as if trying to break this news 'gently' though no such thing had happened (enrolling her, that is -well, _yet_, anyways), and he was, in fact, just being nervous. "by staying with us, you aren't really recieving the education you need," he continued, quite unsure as to how the girl would take this. "I-I mean, education is important, after all! And even the minor Varia members have at least graduated," he babbled, before realizing that he was rambling and trailed off.

"I... _see_," was all she said for a moment, her expression blank, as she stared at the with a rather unreadable expression.

"...So, when do I start?" she asked, as several of the Varia started acting 'normal' again, not that one potential 'crisis' had been averted...

{After all, they couldn't very well _kill_ her, now could they? Well, they _could_, but... Eh, you know what I mean! D=}

* * *

"Next Monday," stated Mammon, as most of the Varia broke out into the usual banter, though Xanxus and Squalo watched them silently, while Lussuria gushed about how Mika would look in a school uniform, rather glad that she had taken this 'so well'.

Squalo had taught her enough Swordsmanship that she could easily best an amateur at least, and with Lussuria's lessons in self defense, as well as Mammon's little 'tips' about Illusions, she could become quite the assassin, seeing how 'rounded' her abilities were... well, if she were to hone her skills a bit more, anyways.

And, though none of them knew it yet, Xanxus was also planning to get someone (not _himself_ of course, seeing as he was so 'busy' and _obviously_ had much better things to do) to start her on the basics of handling a gun. Not to mention, that Bel knew she could use knives (though Xanxus didn't know that yet)...

Well, he knew that she _had_ knives but not whether she had -necessarily- the skills to use the few knives she _had_.

No one except Mammon and Xanxus knew about the 'flames' though, though she had 'revealed' what their flames were, they had -for the most part- just thought it to be odd vocabulary for their places as Guardians.

Xanxus knew, though, and Mammon, as an Arcobaleno, knew as well.

And now Mika. Of course, though neither had told her to keep quiet on the subject, she had, which gave them a reason to 'respect' her, if only a little, and rather grudgingly.

And, though most wouldn't admit it (let alone Levi), she was as much a part of their lives now, as they had become a part of hers.

Of course, she still 'missed home' occasionally, but...

Well, homesickness could always be averted once one got used to their new 'settings'.

And besides, she had always been good at adapting to such changes...

Damn, now she was getting depressed, she thought, as alarm seemed to go through several of the Varia member's facial features.

Crap, had the 'mask' fallen? Darnit... she cursed mentally, though she hid her self-irritation, as she tilted her head quizzically.

"What is it?" she asked, feigning confusion.

"...No, no!" exclaimed Lussuria, seeming to get what she was asking, "Haha, silly me! I forgot to ask about the uniforms!" he laughed, as she realized what they had been thinking, and relaxed somewhat, nodding.

"Oh... do you know what the uniforms look like?" she asked, tilting her head slightly.

It would help if she knew what school she was going to...

"Oh, well, there were several schools around the area, so I hope you don't mind," said Lussuria, as Mammon drew up a few uniforms (how and why he had them, no one except maybe himself -and possibly Mika, as she had guessed that he had thought of this situation beforehand and had already been prepared for it already -just in case, of course).

The _Namimori _Middle School uniform, the Kokuyo Middle School uniform, and several others, though, luckily, she didn't see any Midori Middle School uniforms.

No need for her to be stuck with Haru, right...? It wasn't that she didn't like the girl... well, okay, she didn't, really -but at least she didn't hate her as much as she did Levi... though she was starting to get used to him, and he, her, so she supposed that she didn't really hate him anymore (though there was still a bit of mutual dislike).

Her hate had faded now that she 'knew' him better, but she still found it rather amusing when... 'unfortunate' things happened to the older Thunder Guardian...

* * *

Kokuyo was almost immediately crossed out by Lussuria -why? Reason being: the uniforms weren't 'cute' enough. Plus the color was 'just _ghastly_' against her, not to mention that none of them wanted her to wear such a _short_ skirt.

None of them were even mildly worried about her being able to take care of herself, though it was also one of the unsaid reasons. After all, they may believe in her ability, but even skill was not always enough when faced against sheer number -and there was a _lot_ of... _distasteful_ gang activity around there (even the Varia were disgusted by this fact, though they didn't mention or show it around Mika -it was a pot calling the kettle black, after all, and none of them were quite so hypocritical).

So, of the remaining choices, they had ended up having to choose between Namimori Middle, and another Middle School.

'Seisho', as the other Middle School was apparently called, had a rather cute 'sailor' uniform for the girls, but, upon seeing the design, Mika had immediately flat-out refused.

"No," had been her apathetically adamant answer to Lussuria's protests. (_But the uniforms were so cute!_) Of course, the male uniform wasn't much better, so she would have refused either way.

And so, Namimori had been the only one left. Mammon had been silent the entire time, seeing as he was one of the few that had realized -or even _remembered_- that it was the same school that the Vongola Decimo supposedly attended.

He said nothing, though -mostly because the Mammon there was only an Illusion, while the real Mammon was out doing who only _knew_ what. After all, he had better things to do than to help them choose a school -well, in this case, _uniform_.

Although, in Mika's mind, that uniform was no better, she had decided that she would just wear the guy's uniform and be done with it, since she didn't want to argue with Lussuria anymore -she was getting tired again...

Lussuria saw her fatigue, and almost immediately shooed her off to bed, telling her not to worry, and that he would take care of everything else.

By now, the rest of the Varia had long since dispersed, and even Mammon's Illusion-self had disappeared -discreetly, of course.

Gola Mosca was gone as well, and Mika could do nothing but nod and allow herself to be led to her own room, where she changed, already half asleep, and crawled into bed.

_Everything_ could be dealt with the next day...

* * *

"..." Mika woke to dull sounds of crashing and yelling (unlike Varia Castle, the hotel was not quite so... soundproof), as she stared blankly up at the ceiling. She could hear quite clearly, at the very least, Squalo's side of the argument.

Ye _Gads!_ And it was only seven in the morning! She thought rather tiredly, the noise becoming so loud that, at last, she had had to slam the pillow down, and stalk out of the room towards the dining room (on the same level, of course). And, slamming the double doors open so loudly that all attention was on the sleep-deprived girl, she growled.

"Shut. _Up_." The slight circles under her eyes were obvious, despite all the time she had been sleep for the past few days (she had 'only' had nine or ten hours the night before and her internal clock still wasn't functioning as accurately as she would have liked, so even that was not enough), a dark, demonic aura permeating the air around her, as the room temperature seemed to drop by the tens.

They all stared at her in silence, eyes at least _marginally_ wider (even if not all eyes were visible), as they took in her appearance.

Her hair and clothes were still a bit mussed from sleep (though it only seemed to enhance the demonic look), and the circles -light, but still _circles_- under her eyes, as well as the tired glare she was giving them (a look that reminded many of them all too much of how scary a certain scarred individual could be when deprived of enough alcohol) all just seemed to add to the dark look she had about her.

So shocked, were they by this unexpected outburst, that they had not noticed when she left the room -satisfied that it was quiet now- and had gone back to bed, leaving the doors marginally ajar -forgotten- in her sleepy negligence, as she snuggled back under the comfortable quilting and bed-sheets customary at a high-class hotel like the one they were at, as, in the dining room, the Varia were -at last- beginning to stir out of their shocked selves.

Lussuria started chuckling nervously, as Xanxus finally moved his glass of liquor the last few centimeters to his lips and swallowed -almost as if the tall glass contained juice, rather than the customary alcohol that the scarred man drank. For once, he was silent, though contemplative. He had been just as surprised as the others, though he was glad that Squalo, at least, was silent now because of this.

He had had a minor headache, and the Shark's yelling had not been helping much. But now, with the sweetness of the silence that filled the room -and his alcohol- he could already feel the migraine receding.

As he mused over Mika's little 'show', he ordered more beef, for all that it wasn't normally served at the breakfast table -thankfully, for the Employees, at least, they at least knew better than to defy the head of this crazy congregation (especially when said boss had been seen with flaming hands on the occasion that he had been pissed off -something that scared the manager and employees to near death).

Meanwhile, in his little corner, Mammon was just as silent as usual as he continued to stare after Mika. Unlike the others, he had realized that the 'dark aura' had been an illusion -even if it had seemed so real to the others, he knew, and, even though it had almost seemed real enough to affect _him_ as well, he had just calmly continued to eat, studying the girl thoughtfully.

Unlike usual, when he was 'teaching' her, she seemed to have a much better grasp on illusions when she used them as unconsciously as she had just done.

Hmn...

* * *

Several hours later, Mika appeared again. This time, dressed in a simple ensemble of an 'L'-like {Death Note ref.} slightly-longer-than-normal-sleeved blue-grey shirt, and a pair of plain looking blue-jeans, along with almost gothic black boots that added about two inches to her height, and, though they couldn't see it, a neutral colored tanktop.

She had seemed _so_ cheerful that they had almost put the earlier 'performance' down as an illusion -or perhaps just their imagination- (though it _had_ been -an illusion, that was). Especially since it seemed that the girl had almost no recollection of what had occurred, just hours earlier.

In fact, for once, she had even brought her 'Blueberry' -or whatever she called it (Blackberry)- phone, and could be heard humming quietly along to her music at times, as she picked up some of the food from the buffet table that had been set out especially for the Varia (fortunately for her, the Hotel employ had worked hard to keep the food at the tables fresh and plentiful), though there was a rather odd selection of non-breakfast foods laid out as well.

And already, half of her plate consisted of said 'non-breakfast' foods.

She had picked up some tuna (sashimi) and a few other raw-fish delicacies that were so typical to the part of Asia they were currently in -with the exception of Salmon, which, for whatever reason, was the only raw fish she would absolutely _not_ eat. Cooked, perhaps, but _raw_? In the words of the typical European/American peoples... '_Ew_'. Other than that, though, she had chosen different kinds of sushi that she recognized -or that looked and smelled good; some _Cake_, Chocolate-Chip Waffles, an Omelet stuffed with mushrooms and other little goodies that she typically liked, a little of the left-over beef (amazingly, Xanxus had not eaten all of it -though it may have had something to do with the fact that Xanxus had already gone through all the beef at least three times), and a whole bunch of other things (made fresh of course), Hash Browns, and other such random things.

In short, she had basically chosen whatever she'd felt like eating.

Unfortunately, so much... _sugar_... was probably not very good or her -and, unlike most, she was much more susceptible to the effects of sugar that most {and I quote: "normal"} people.

Of course, none of the Varia seemed to notice this, aside from the fact that she was much more cheerful that she usually was, as she'd eaten, and had gone back for a few extra helpings of dessert, and more sweets. Or... whatever _else_ she felt like eating.

In the end, she had still eaten less than any of them (with the exception of Mosca and Mammon -but, considering that one was an infant, and the other was a machine...), though she had still eaten three or five plates worth of food and had more energy to burn than usual.

Luckily for her, they had all decided on a rest day, so Mika could go out and just wander, since Luss and the others would be busy (partly to actually _enroll_ her into school). Though, again, they had failed to ask her age, which, at the moment was about the same as Bel's, maybe a little older, seeing as his birthday was in December, while hers was in October...

So, with everyone else preoccupied, and herself being bored enough to go out -after making sure that at least one of the others had her cell number and she had theirs (just in case)- she decided to wander the streets of Namimori, Japan.

She had been given some of the typical Japanese currency (a lot, actually, though she couldn't remember the conversion of yen at the moment, so she really couldn't tell how much it was actually worth, aside from the fact that somewhere around a thousand yes was equal to one American dollar) for whatever expenses and shopping she wanted.

She had accepted it rather gratefully, seeing as she didn't have any Japanese curreny on her, and she knew that credit cards didn't always 'convert' correctly, so she could end up spending more than she meant to (which she didn't want to risk), plus the fact that it would just be plain imbecilic not to accept that Okama's help when he was so willing to give it (and free of expense-... she was starting to turn into a regular Mammon, wasn't she?).

And, though she didn't know it yet, Mammon had probably had some part in it as well, as, when she had moved to put the money in her wallet (which she had not thought to do until after she'd already left), she had found that there was another card in there -Japanese, this time, with her 'name' written on it.

'Murasaki Mika'.

Well, it was close enough, she decided, reading the name written on it. She at least recognized the Hiragana/Katakana it was written out in (though she couldn't remember exactly which it was at the moment), though it was also printed out in English right under it as well. It was an indigo colored card, and it was an actual _credit_ card, not debit like the other card the Arcobaleno had so kindly bequeathed her.

She couldn't help but smile as she stuffed the item back into her bag (the messenger bag that she still carried around of course), as she placed the travel-sized earbuds back into her ears, humming as she listened to the music on her phone, while wandering around, being very careful to save money so that she would have enough to take a taxi back, if she remembered the cost per mile correctly from when they'd arrived at the Hotel (she kept back twice the amount, just in case she needed it). She knew that there were few enough hotels in the area, and that it would be easier to find her way back by taxi, seeing that there were apparently only two of the Hotel Chain in that county, and this was the closest one.

Of course, she also knew that the Vongola Decimo would be training by now, so there was only a small chance that she'd see them around anyways -though it _was_ a bit of a pity.

She would've _loved_ the chance to tease the poor T(s)una, while leaving minor, veiled hints of what she knew -it would've been entertaining, to say the least...

* * *

Tsuna walked home, wincing now and then. He was still a little sore from the training session he'd had with Reborn and Basil, who was, by now, almost healed enough to help with sparring.

She sighed, tired, as he winced again. It was still rather painful, as he had a bit of a bruise forming around his chest and abdominal areas -no thanks to Reborn's brutal and spartan training methods, of course.

And, on top of that, having the bad luck that he always did, he ended up bumping right into someone.

A girl, he realized, from the voice, as he winced again, rubbing his head, as he voiced the same painful complaints as she had when they both fell back onto the sidewalk.

A slight clattering noise could barely be heard when they did, as a pair of -what he recognized to be- earbuds fell as well.

The other figure was wearing a hooded jacket with the hood up, so he couldn't really see her face. She sounded about his age, though.

"Ow...! Sorry, I wasn't really watching where I was going," the girl offered politely, as they both got up, and she picked up the musical device that had fallen (it was face down, so he couldn't really see the front of it).

"Ite-te-! N-No, it's my fault," admitted Tsuna sheepishly, "I... should've payed more attention to where I was going," he admittered, staring down at his shoes, only to catch a glimpse of hers.

His gaze traveled up to find normal, faded jeans, a slightly-too-large bluish shirt, as well as a slightly darker blue jacket. The hood shadowing the other's face, had fallen back enough that he could see most of the face, though, showing that the girl's expression had pulled from slight suprise into a slight grimace.

"Well, I guess that means we'll both have to be careful, then~" the other girl said cheerfully, as she stooped to pick up a... bag?

He blinked, tilting his head slightly, for some reason.

"Uhm... Are you... possibly... a foreigner...?" he asked, even though her speech was flawless. He had meant to ask if she wasn't from around the area, seeing as everyone in Namimori seemed to know who 'dame-Tsuna' was, but for some reason, he had ended up asking if she was a foreigner -it felt right, though, for some reason, to ask her that.

By no, the girl's head had whirled to stare at him, "How did you-?(!)" she started, before he could start apologizing for being so presumptuous.

The first apology ended up being swallowed in place of the second.

"Uhm, no, w-well..." he started, frantically searching his memory, any thoughts, "Before!" he blurted out, "Wh-When we bumped into each other... you... you were speaking English... right?" he asked, "I-I'm not sure what you were saying but..." he trailed off, for some reason, the explanation felt right, but...

Something else was telling him to be wary.

She wasn't quite so normal as she appeared...

* * *

Mika stared at the shy brunette, almost immediately recognizing the boy for Sawada Tsunayoshi. Well, once she got over the fact that he was only a few centimeters shorter than her, and struggling not to exclaim and glomp him like a typical fan-girl, which would probably confuse him.

And, at a time like this, he probably would've taken it as an attack as well, she mused. Not to mention that he would've been quite suspicious that she'd known who he was without him saying anything...

Or so she was thinking, as her eyes darted from here to there, trying to find a hint of the Arcobaleno-Tutor that would surely be present...

* * *

**A/N**: Whoot! 4,176 {Now 5,327} Words! XD Still above 4,000 word count this chapter~ :hearts: *cheers*

**Spanner**: ...Impressive...? *claps*

**Authoress**: ... I'm not even going to ask. *decides* In any case, I've decided that, as celebration for halloween I will work on a one-shot and -hopefully- get it up by then (=D) But, I'm not quite sure whether I can do that or not. Plus, there are two one-shots I could possibly do...

**Spanner**: Oh? *curious now* Mind sharing?

**Authoress**: Mn... Well, there's a Natsu/Nuts X Roll one-shot, with implied 1827, and then there's this little one-shot that I thought of -as part of a series that I plan to call the KHR! Dare Series, called "Cervello Vs. Vindicare" or CVV for short (=P)

**Spanner**: Uh-huh... And? You haven't exactly explained what it's about...

**Authoress**: Huh... I didn't did I...? Well then, I can give basic info if ya want, Span-chan~ (^^)

**Spanner**: ...Sure... *shrugs* It's not like I have anything to do...

**Authoress**: Great! *grins*

**Spanner**: *takes pop out and waits patiently*

**Authoress**: (=D) Okay, so here's a 'skeleton' so you know how it looks before I start~

[ Title] (Alternative Title/other possible titles)

SUMMARY: (summary, fuh)

GENRES: (whatever genres I feel it is)

CHARACTERS: (characters appearing)

PAIRINGS: (should be obvious)

RATING: (exactly as it says)

I'm not putting the "SEQUEL?:" possibility, since it's moot point, really. (=P)

**Spanner**: *studies skeleton and nods* I get it now. Go ahead then...

**Authoress**: Okidokes! *grins and starts* Here's the first one! ^^

[ One Fine Day ] (Natsu to Roll/Nuts and Rolls)

SUMMARY: What? Giannini's made a new invention...? Uh-oh... Wait... why are there-? No way, Nuts? Roll! Wait a second, Roll is a girl?(!) ...Uh-oh... Hibari's going to be pissed isn't he...?

"Herbivore, what did you do _this_ time...?" "H-Hieee-! Hi-Hibari-san-!"

GENRES: Humor!; Crack!; Fluff!/Mild Romance; and and a mini-misadventure of epic proportions!

CHARACTERS: (main) Natsu/Nuts, Roll, Tsuna & Hibari; (side) Giannini, other Vongola; (mentioned) Varia

PAIRINGS: Natsu/Nuts X Roll and Implied 1827

RATING: K/T+ depending

**Authoress**: And... that's the first one! (=D)

**Spanner**: ...Interesting... *starts contemplating on the possibility of making Box Animals Human* And, the other one?

**Authoress**: Oh, the "CVV" one? Right, here it is then~

[ Cervello Vs Vindicare ] (KHR! Dare! Series Extra: CVV Edition)

SUMMARY: Well, we've seen the Vongola Vs Varia (not yet, of course, since it hasn't happened yet, but this would take place after it, though it could stand alone) Dare! Series Battle, but just who's the real 'Justice'? Who's top dog? Cervello? Or Vindice/Vindicare? Not "Truth or Dare" and not just "Dare" the Cervello Vs Vindicare 'battle' will be a sight to see!

WARNING: MAJOR OC/SPECULATION (mostly due to lack of sufficient data and an imagination gone wild via sugar high)

GENRES: Crack!, Humor!, and... not much else, really... *sweats*

CHARACTERS: (main) Cervello, Vindicare; (possible side/mentions) Vongola, Varia, etc.?

PAIRINGS: None so far/decided

RATING: K/T+ depending (=D)

**Authoress**: And... there we go! (^^) That's it. The first one was decided a while ago, but I haven't found the time to write much other than what you see there. The second has been in my mind for a while, but I haven't managed to get it down til now (D=)

**Spanner**: ...I see... It's... Interesting *cautious* ...Want one? *offers lolipop*

**Authoress**: Eh, don't mind if I do~ But, for today's disclaimer...

**?**: VOOOOOOOOOOOOIIIIIIIIIIIIIII! WHY THE HELL DO I HAVE TO WEAR THIS STUPID OUTFIT!

**Authoress**: *winces and sighs* Yeah... I think we all know who's doing the disclaimer today... ("- .-)

**Squalo**: *scowls and stomps over wearing... a french maid dress with a chibi-shark on the apron and with hair braided into one long, loose, braid in back* ...

**Authoress**: *snickers* You look great, _Sharkie_~ :hearts: *grin*

**Squalo**: ... *glares and growls at the source of his misfortune, while trying to keep skirt from riding up any higher*

**Authoress**: *grins* Lol, as for why you have to wear the dress... *smirks* It's called _Fanservice_Sharkie~ Learn it, Live it, LOVE it. *grins wider*

**Mammon**: Muu... *appears from nowhere* This will make perfect blackmail material... *is recording everything*

**Authoress**: Oh yeah, there's the blackmail too~ *grins* 'Ello, Mammon~! *hugs Mammon but lets him go after in case he's in a 'fining' mood*

**Mammon**: Muu... Hello, Murasaki... I won't fine you, since I'm getting good stuff here... *looks as Squalo* If you want me not to spread this around the internet, then you'll put 10x the A rank payment in my account by next monday... *smirks*

**Squalo**: *grumbling and glaring*... Fi- Wait a minute...! That's just two days! *glares*

**Mammon**: *shrugs* Take it or leave it, Squalo.

**Squalo**: ... *grumbles* Fine...

**Authoress**: Oh, and don't forget to... *whispers in ear*

**Squalo**: *listens, eyes widening, then glares* No fucking way, bitch! *scowl*

**Authoress**: Oh reeeaaallly? *mischevious grin*

**Squalo**: *suspicious* What are you planning b-woman...? *glares*

**Authoress**: *acts innocent* Who, _me_? Nothing! Except... this~ *stuffs cat ears on Squalo's head, and somehow attaches the tail, too*

**Squalo**: WHAT THE FUCK?(!) *glares and reels back, while attempting to take cat appendages off*

**Authoress**: *smirks* Ah-ah-ah~ Trying to take them off will make them stuck on even more~ *grins* You don't want to have to shave your head to get rid of those new appendages, do you~?

**Mammon**: Muu... *smirks* I like the way you think, Murasaki...

**Authoress**: *smirks* Why thank you, Mammon~ *grins*

**Spanner**: *sighs* So that's what you wanted me to make that for... *thinks: _Evil Woman..._ shudders*

**Authoress**: (=D) But of course, Spanner~ And look! It works perfectly! (^^) *wears another set -same, only slightly smaller* See? *wiggles new appendages easily*

**Mammon**: Interesting... *stares at ears, and starts thinking of profit* Can you make more? *turns to Spanner*

**Spanner**: ... I suppose *thinking: _I don't think I will, though... Not if it's going to be used like this..._*

**Squalo**: I fucking hate you, bitch... *growls*

**Authoress**: *grins* Do what I tell you, and the appendages will not only come off, but I'll make Xanxus to wear them for a week~ *smiles mischeviously and cackles*

**Everyone else**: ("O.o) ... *thinks: _Crazy lady/bitch..._*

**Squalo**: *grumbles* ...Really?

**Authoress**: Yup~ Devil's Honor~ *raises hand*

**Squalo**: *twitches* You're not a fucking devil...

**Authoress**: Tsk, so he caught on... *Reborn imitation*

**Everyone else**: *shivers and shrinks back*

**Authoress**: Fine, fine... *pouts, but whispers something else in his ears* ... Okay?

**Squalo**: *torn between looking tempted and angry and amused all at once* ... _Fine_...

But if ANYONE sees me...! *leaves threat hanging and stomps off towards Varia castle*

**Authoress**: Of _course_ not, Squalo~ I'll make sure the _others_ are nowhere near there... *crosses fingers behind back*

**Spanner**: *sweats* ...evil...

**Mammon**: *smirks* I take it you want me to give you a copy...?

**Authoress**: *grins* You read my mind, Mammon~

Ah, Spanner, stay here and hold the fort down, ne? Come on, Mammon-chan~ We've got some Blackmail to compile~ *laughs evilly and walks off to stalk Squalo*

**Mammon**: *smirks and follows*

* * *

**Varia Castle **{WARNING!: SHOUNEN AI/YAOI IMPLICATIONS! !}:

"VOOOIIIII!" the familiar yell alerted everyone to the return of a certain silver-haired shark.

Xanxus twitched, crushing his glass by accident...

Good thing he was finished with that, though he was surprised that that psychotic woman would let the silver-haired man go so soon... {**Authoress**: He(y)- oh... well, I have nothing against being called a psycho *grins* **Mammon**: ... Muu...}

His eyes narrowed as he thought about what could have happened...

Best case scenario: The Bitch {Hey!} had died...

Worst case: She had blackmailed the shark into doing something -or revealing something- to let him go...

If it was the worst case, then it was likely that something would happen.

He didn't know how right he was, when the silver haired man marched in -the Varia boss had just started nursing another glass of the vintage wine he had ordered, alone, of course- and he did a spit-take at the shocking scene.

He started coughing violent, "S-_Squalo_?" he stared rather disbelievingly at his second in command.

Said Second-In-Command scowled, and tapped his foot impatiently, "What!" he snapped, tapping a slender -and how had he not noticed it all this time?- foot, causing the frilly skirt he wore to rise up -just a little- causing the pale, smooth, white alabaster skin to expose itself just that much more.

Catching the stare at his legs, the shark had the courtesy to blush a soft rosy pink, and straighten himself.

Xanxus just stared some more, all thought having flown out of conscious mind.

"Wh-What the _fuck_ are you wearing, scum?" he rasped slightly (much to his dismay) before clearing his throat -partly from the effect of the coughing fit, but partly from... something else...

"...aid outfit..." the blushing male Second mumbled.

"_What?_" he demanded, glad that he was regaining at least some semblance of 'normality'...

The silver haired male scowled and spoke louder, though it only served to make him look even... -dare he say it?- _cuter_...

"The Bitch forced me to wear a damn Maid Outfit..." he said, stalking over to Xanxus, still a bit pink, "She also ordered me to... to..."

He took a deep breath, and pulled the other male to himself, half forcing himself to sit in the other's lap, as he drew the other into a scathing kiss that the Varia's Boss unconsciously responded to...

A large, warm, calloused hand reached up into the male's hair and tugged, to give him more access to the other's mouth, while the other hand pulled the silver-haired male closer.

Squalo forced back the urge to moan into the kiss -he would not be... okay, so he already _was_ Xanxus' bitch...

Neither noticed a certain female wearing usable cat-appendages and Arcobaleno sneaking into the room. The female biting back a girlish giggle, as the other kept the illusion up, so that they were invisible to all.

Finally, the female was behind Xanxus, where only Squalo could see her if she weren't under the illusion, she waved a hand to the floating baby, who removed the illusion just long enough to make sure that the Shark saw her, and the remote she waved.

Somehow, the shark saw, and started reaching up, up, up towards...

The cat ears that had been flattened to his head -which could easily be mistaken as part of the black, gothic headband he had been forced into wearing.

He just managed to get the cat ears onto his Boss's head, but then had to give into the heat of desire...

The female just grinned, and pressed a few buttons on the remote, sniggering quietly (not that she had to, with all the noise the two were making).

"Let's go," she murmured (though a bit disappointed about having to, she really didn't want to risk it) to the Mist Arcobaleno who once again shrouded her in his mist of illusion, and nodded.

He didn't want to have to watch them go at it any longer -especially since he knew what would probably come next...

He left a 'clone' and a camera, though... _just_ in case.

He knew that Murasaki would probably want a copy what what was going on even if she didn't say anything.

Watching a video, and watching them go at it live, were two _completely_ different beasts in the Illusionist's mind...

Neither Squalo or Xanxus had thought anything of the fact that no one seemed to be in the castle (courtesy of a certain authoress), before somehow moving to the closest bedroom for certain..._activities_...

It would not be until the next morning that Xanxus would realize just _what_ had happened, and would be pissed as hell, but...

Well, that's another story...

* * *

**Authoress**: Phew! *back at 'base'* That was close! *grins*

**Mammon**: *nods* At least I got my blackmail material... Though it would probably be unwise to blackmail the boss...

**Authoress**: I'll do it if you want -I just want 10% of whatever you make, though... I need the money. (=D) *walks into base*

**Mammon**: Muu... *thinks about it and nods* Fine. Ask for 20x the S rank payment, then...

**Authoress**: 20x S rank... got it! (^^)

**Spanner**: Ah, welcome back *takes lollipop out of mouth* How'd it go?

**Authoress**: *grins* I think I may have more fanservice than I bargained for~ Or, at least, gotten a certain... red-eyed 'rabbit' and silver 'shark' to realize their 'feelings'... *smirks*

Or, it could just be my KHR shounen-ai/yaoi wired mind... (=P) Cuz I definitely see XS here~ *squeals* (XD)

**Spanner**: ..I... see... *doesn't understand in reality*

**Mammon**: *sigh* Well, in any case, I think I'll stay here for a while -I don't think any of us will be able to go back to the castle for a while... Muu... Such a pain, *sighs* but...

**Authoress**: Think of the money Mammon-chan~ *grins* Blackmail~ :hearts:

**Mammon**: Yeah, whatever. I'm going to go find a room to stay in for now... I suppose I'll have to see you around... *sighs and floats away*

**Authoress**: *beams* I LOVE YOU TOO, MAMMON! *calls after*

Lol! Well, that's it for toda- _crap!_ *realizes something*

**Spanner**: *startled* What is it?

**Authoress**: ...I forgot to get Squalo to do the disclaimer! *pouts* ... Well, whatever, I think everyone knows that I don't own much here *grins* But, I'll have someone say it next time~ (=D)

So, for today, ya'll have to deal with me~ *turns to reader* So, as you all know, I don't own! ^^ Akira-sama does!

Ja ne~! ^^ *waves goodbye*

See you again, desu! *glances around to make sure a certain maroon-nette doesn't appear*

Oh! And before I forget! (XD) The reason the Varia didn't appear before, was because we all know what happened! =D That doesn't change.

I won't waste my time writing about something we all know about, so... yeah. Lambo being chased by Levi, battle issued... blah-di-blah-di-blah...

I won't bore anyone with details that don't need reiteration. As for the end, well... *grins* You'll see~

So, again, ja ne! See you again, ne?

**Spanner**: An R&R please... Or she'll get depressed...

**Authoress**: Will not! *scoffs*

**Spanner**: ... Whatever you say, Saki-san... *turns back to work*

**Authoress**: 'Saki-san'...? *blinks* Huh, that's a first...

* * *

**Edit(4/24/11'):** HAPPY EASTER, EVERYONE! =3

I doubt anyone'll be reading today of all days, but yeah... =P New and improved 8th Chapter~ One more, and I can call it a day for Stuck!

I have the tenth chapter planned, and half-typed already, so, no need to worry! I plan on taking down the poll either today or tomorrow, though, so if you haven't voted yet, please do! =3

And yes, I know this may scare off some of my non-yaoi/shounen-ai lovers, but hey, you've been warned before! Once I finish revising the next chapter, I'll have to think up a new summary though... D=

I don't want it to give too much away, but I do want it to make sense, so... yeah. If the 'summary' portion doesn't make sense for a while longer...

My apologies.


	10. Meeting Vongola Decimo

**Stuck in the KHR! World**

A Katekyo Hitman Reborn! Fanfiction

_by_ **Murasaki Argenteria**

* * *

9. **Meeting the Vongola Decimo... **(**When He Doesn't Know You ****_Know_**)

* * *

Needless to say, despite the other brushing it off, Tsuna still felt really bad about having bumped into the other person, and, in the end, had ended up inviting her over to his place, seeing as her jacket sleeve seemed to have ripped -and it had looked very, _very_ recent, too.

Besides, Reborn would probably kill him if he found out that he had been so 'discourteous' to a girl...

"Ah! Uhm, I'm Tsuna, by the way!" he said, when he realized that they had not introduced themselves, "Sawada, Tsunayoshi -though most call me Tsuna," he continued, though, of course, he had decided not to add the 'dame' part of it.

For some reason, though, it felt almost as if she had been waiting for this, "Nice to meet you, Tsuna!" she grinned, "I'm Mika! Murasaki, Mikami, though everyone here calls me Mika for whatever reason," she laughed...

* * *

When they had finally arrived at Tsuna's house, Mika was a bit surprised at just how loud it _really_ was. Not quite as loud as Squalo, mind you, but it was _almost_ as loud as the silver haired shark...

Beside her, Tsuna sighed, before opening the gate for her.

She smiled, and thanked him politely, as she looked around. Interestingly enough, she could already hear the kids (I-Pin and Lambo)'s screaming and yelling, before Tsuna had even opened the door.

As soon as it _was_ open, though...

A blur of black and white shot out and slammed right into Tsuna, knocking the poor boy over.

"Gyahahaha~! You'll never catch the Great Lambo-sama!" exclaimed a certain obnoxious, cow-costumed child.

"Lambo! No! Give I-Pin sweet back! Not Lambo's!" an egg-headed infant around the same age as Lambo ran after him, wearing a chinese-styled uniform.

Tsuna was still laying on the floor, rubbing his head, as Lambo stood on his stomach, holding what looked like a pack of candy, still laughing and seemingly about it eat it, much to I-Pin's horror.

Mika frowned, plucking the treats out of Lambo's hands, "That's not nice -Lambo-kun, was it?" she said, just to make it seem like she didn't already know his name, though anyone listening would have found it quite easy to figure out...

Lambo grit his teeth, "Give that back! It's _Lambo-sama_'s candy!" he exclaimed.

Mika sighed, still rather calm, "No," she said simply, "Now get off of Tsuna-kun, please," she said, still polite, though she was starting to get irritated.

I-Pin just watched what was going on in silence, not quite sure whether this new arrival was good or bad yet (although, seeing as she seemed to know Tsuna, I-Pin was hoping she was good).

"I-Pin willing share, if Lambo does!" she said at last, while Tsuna helped himself up, though Lambo still denied every charge against him.

"But Lambo take without ask!" she frowned, "Still, I-Pin share!" she told her, holding her hands out to Mika, hoping that she would be nice and return the package of sweets.

Mika's lips quirked into a smile, "You're too nice to him, I-Pin," she said, though she leaned down a bit to hand it back, "Now, don't let him take it away from you again, you hear?" she chided lightly.

I-Pin smiled, "谢谢, 大姐!" (XièXiè, DàJiě! ) she exclaimed in chinese, "I-Pin will look after it better from now on!"

Mika smiled, "不客气!" (BùKèQì! ) she replied in the same language, lips quirking as she had never thought she would be using it in a conversation here -not while she was with the Varia anyways.

"Make sure you do, okay?" she said, as I-Pin's face lit up at the familiar language.

"是的! 我会!" (Shì-de! WǒHuì! ) she replied, only too happy to be able to use her native language.

Mika smiled, "Un! 我相信你," (WǒXiāngXìnNǐ ) she answered, before seeing Tsuna and Lambo's confused looks. Tsuna was polite enough to stay quiet, though Lambo looked like he was about to interrupt.

"Now then, why don't you and Lambo-kun go play, I-Pin?" she asked, gently coaxing the Chinese Infant assassin.

I-Pin seemed to understand, as she looked at Lambo, and nodded. "Okay!" she said, before turning to her companion, "Come, Lambo!"

She ran back into the house, forcing the cow-print clad child to follow if he still wanted candy, though he was still wary of Mika.

"Bleh~!" He made an annoying face at Mika before following after I-Pin again...

Mika just sighed, suppressing what irritation she felt (after all, Lambo wasn't the most annoying Mafioso in Fuuta's book for nothing...!), seeing as he was only a child.

But really, that child needed discipline...

* * *

The two stood in the doorway for a while, one staring in shock, while the other looked on with a bit of amusement, biting back a smile.

"Uhm... Tsuna...? Are you alright...?" she asked when he showed no sign of stopping, even going so far as to wave a hand in front of the boy's face when he didn't answer.

"Huh- Wha?" Tsuna blinked, realizing that he had spaced out, and flushed, "Ah, s-sorry, Mika-san," he apologized.

"But, uhm... I-I didn't know you could speak... Chinese... was it?" he looked a little confused, "From what you spoke earlier, I was sure..." he trailed off, and flushed again, realizing that he had assumed things again.

Mika chuckled, "Oh, yeah, just one of my many abilities~" she teased, grinning.

Tsuna seemed to feel a little awkward, but at that moment, Sawada Nana came out of the kitchen.

"Ara? I thought I heard you, Tsu-kun!" Nana smiled, "And? Who's this? A friend?" she asked, seeming rather interested that her son had brought a strange girl home (quote "lady-friend" as she would later describe her to Iemitsu) -and alone.

"Eh? Ah! U-Uhm, Mom, this is Mika-san! I accidentally bumped into her on my way home," he said sheepishly, "And, uhm, well, she ripped her sleeve, so I thought..." he trailed off.

"Ah!" Nana nodded understandingly, "Well then, Welcome to our humble home, Mika-chan!" she smiled brightly, "If you'll give me the damaged shirt-"

"Jacket, mom," Tsuna corrected, making Nana smile again.

"-Oh, yes. _Jacket_- I'd be more that willing to fix it for you!" she beamed, before looking over to Tsuna, "Oh, Tsu-kun, Reborn-chan's waiting for you in your room by the way," she told him, eliciting a groan from her son.

Tsuna sighed, "Ugh, I'm sorry Mika-san, but I-"

Mika held a hand up, shaking her head, "It's alright," she said with a smile, "I understand, important right?" she asked.

"Well... Something like that..." he said awkwardly -how could he tell a total stranger that it was mafia-related?

She grinned, figuring out what he was thinking quite easily from his expression, "It's alright, I'll stay down here with your mother," she said, "I won't go anywhere too soon," she promised.

He just nodded, "O-okay, then..." he said, before going up the stairs, "C-Call if you need anything!" he called back, a slight nervous smile in place before he turned back and made his way to his room...

In the kitchen, Sawada Nana had already pulled out a sewing kit, and was waiting, "Sorry for intruding," Mika apologized, dredging up as much Japanese custom as she could.

Nana just smiled, "It's alright. It's just nice to see Tsu-kun making so many friends -he didn't have many before Reborn appeared, you know," she told her, as Mika handed her the jacket, and showed her the sleeve that needed repairing.

She sat down in the empty seat that Nana insisted she sit in -after all, no need for her to be uncomfortable as she waited, right?

"Ah, really?" she smiled, "That's nice," she agreed, watching as Nana expertly patched the sleeve up almost as good as new -_definitely_ much better than she could do herself.

She just didn't have the patience...

Well, usually -not enough to do a good job, anyways!

"Mn," Nana smiled, before looking over to her, "So, how do you know my Tsu-kun?" she asked.

"Oh, well, we... kinda bumped into each other," she confessed, deciding that she should keep as much to the truth as she possibly could.

"Oh, really?" Nana looked surprised.

Mika nodded, "Yeah, I was wandering the area a bit, since I'm supposed to be starting at Namimori Middle come Monday," she explained, and Nana's eyes lit with understanding, "It's just temporary... I think," she frowned, "But I wanted to take a look at the school before I went back 'home'," she explained. In reality, though, she had been surprised that she'd been able to find the park so soon -the first actual sign that she had found the area Tsuna lived in, since the rest was just houses, and some of them looked so alike... Well, one could just imagine...

Nana nodded, "I see! Did you find it?" she asked, smiling a bit at her. She was glad to know that Tsuna would have another new friend to play with -and a girl at that!

Mika looked a bit sheepish, "Eh... Actually... No, I... kinda got lost..." she said, "See, we're staying at a hotel at the moment," she explained.

Nana looked quite sympathetic, "New house not ready yet?" she asked, assuming.

Mika bit her lip slightly, "Eh, well... Something like that," she said -not a total lie... kind of. She had a feeling that some of them were getting tired of the Hotel place, and would probably just buy a house or something, knowing what little common sense half the Varia had...

Unfortunately. Besides, Luss would probably demand it, and try to 'liven' the place up by decorating it...

In _his_ fashion... She almost shivered at that, but somehow suppressed it.

"There we go! All done!" Mika looked back to Nana, a bit startled, as she cut the thread.

"Eh? Already?" she blinked, and Nana smiled, blushing a bit.

"Well, Tsu-kun tends to trip a lot..." she trailed off.

"Ah," Mika nodded -of course, she should have known that Nana would have a lot of experience.

"Oh, do you know how to get home? Or do you have a ride?" she asked.

"Oh, I was going to find a Taxi..." she said, before she realized how incredibly stupid the statement had been -not _once_ had she seen one around Namimori while she had wandered...

Nana frowned, seeming to realize the same thing, "That's right, you probably don't know how the buses work here since you're new, do you?" she asked, before thinking, "Hold on! I think we have the number for the Taxi company around here somewhere..." she started, getting up to find the sheet with the number written on it. Iemitsu often used it when he came home to visit.

"Ah, yeah, but- Eh?" she blinked, Nana had left her seat before she had even realized it...

Damn! That woman was fast! She thought...

* * *

By the time that Mika got 'home', she could honestly say there wasn't much about Tsuna she didn't know...

Yes, Sawada Nana, like all doting and indulgent parents, _loved_ to talk about her child -in this case, Tsuna. Now she probably wouldn't have to hide anything, too, which was the upside to all of it. There was little that she didn't already know, but... It _had_ still been fun to listen to the stories about poor Tsuna.

Surprisingly, though, Lambo and I-Pin had not caused any ruckus during the rest of the duration of her stay. She had a feeling that Lambo hated her now, though I-Pin seemed to like her well enough -although that may have mainly been because she could speak to Mika in full sentences and ramble on, unlike with the others, since she still struggled a little with Japanese on a daily basis...

Fuuta had not made an appearance, and that disappointed her, though she knew it wasn't likely to appear to begin with (she didn't remember him being around during that arc, in any case), and she had not seen Yamamoto and Gokudera. And, though she wasn't surprised, she was still a bit disappointed.

She _did_ promise Nana that she would come back and visit whenever she could though, seeing as Nana had so kindly invited her to stay at her home whenever and for however long to 'play', or even study.

She wasn't sure that the Varia would be very happy if they found out about this, but she knew it was unlikely she would do more than stay for dinner anyways -none of the Varia would miss her, after all...

Unless it was Luss, and Mammon -though in the latter's case, it was more out of duty than affection. (Though she didn't know that she actually _had_ started to grow on the infant.)

No, wait, maybe Mammon, too, since -odd as it was- there was an almost paternal relationship that had been forged between the two...

Oh, and Squalo, though he would probably only be irritated that she was missing lessons -oh, right, note to self:_ Never miss Squalo's lessons, and always do Luss' recommended exercises at the very least if unable to meet for training..._ she thought to herself.

"I'm back!" she called, though she expected no reply, as she pulled the hood down, and walked down the hall towards her assigned room, looking just a little worse for wear (due to fatigue, of course).

So it was quite a surprise when almost all the Varia -minus Levi- appeared almost immediately to question her. It _was_ quite late after all.

She sighed, looks like she would have to go through 'interrogation' before she could even get to her room let alone the shower...

* * *

"Eh?" Tsuna blinked, coming down the stairs to find his mother alone. "Did Mika-san leave already?" he asked.

Nana smiled at her son, "Oh, yes, she left a while ago, Tsu-kun. And you should be getting ready for bed now!" she chided gently.

"Eh?" Tsuna blinked again, and looking at the clock, "Hieeee-! It's so late already?" he exclaimed, finally realizing what time it was -so late! He would _never_ be able to wake up on time tomorrow!

"Uuu..." The tears started then, as he thought of the wake-up call he was sure to receive -no, wait, more importantly, Reborn was being too evil! He had changed all the times on the clocks in his room, the little Devil!

Wait, no, he couldn't thinking of that right now. Mika had left, which he supposed was good in a way... but...

"But my, I still can't believe such a cute girl is going to be moving here~" Nana giggled, "How nice!" she smiled.

"Eh?" Tsuna stared at his mother incomprehensibly. What was she talking about? Wasn't Mika just here on vacation or something...?

"Ara, Tsu-kun, didn't you know? She's starting at your school on monday!" she smiled ecstatically at the thought of her Tsu-kun having a new 'friend' -and such a nice girl at that! "Isn't that nice?"

"Eeeeehhhh-!(!)!" he exclaimed.

* * *

Mika sighed, trying to sort all the questions out.

"Wait, wait, _wait_!(!)" she exclaimed, catching their attention at last, "I can't hear myself think, let alone hear all your questions at once!" she cried out, glaring at them all.

Not that they were at all phased, though they _did_ quiet down.

"Well where were you?(!)" exclaimed Lussuria, "You were so late, we were about to send out a search party!" the okama declared.

Mika just raised a single brow, really? Just _now_?

"Uh... For one, I was in Namimori," she started, "I wanted to see what the school would look like," she said off-hand, "Of course, it might have been a better idea to have gone there first, then shopping after, but..." she shrugged.

Obviously stores didn't open that late.

Lussuria finally noticed the few shopping bags she had with her, and wondered, first of all, why she had not bought more, and second, what she could have bought anyways -something a few others were thinking too, after the_ last_ shopping spree she and Lussuria had gone on.

Xanxus rolled his eyes, finally speaking up (again), since he wanted his question answered too. Surprisingly, he had been just a _little_ worried about the girl -even if only for what she could possibly become in the future...

"_And?_ That doesn't explain why you were so late," Xanxus growled -just a little ways apart, Squalo seemed to be scowling as well.

Mika didn't need to ask to know what he was thinking. Gah, how troublesome! She thought, grumbling a bit.

"Well, I got lost," she pouted slightly, "It's kind of hard to remember every land mark in a new place you know," she said dryly, making Xanxus frown -she had never been this disrespectful before (though it was only minor disrespect).

Then again, he _was_ standing between her, a bath, and a good night's sleep.

She sighed, "Look, I'm tired, I'm irritable -and I have _school_ early in the morning tomorrow... Can we keep this short please?" she asked when she realized how she was acting -though she really _was_tired.

She had been walking practically the entire day!

There was slight grumbling but they agreed. The only ones with no questions now were just interested in what might happen now (Bel), or already knew that their questions would be answered with the others' (Mammon).

"As for training -I walked all over Namimori today, isn't that enough?" she asked, "And yes, I have the sword," she said, before Squalo could open his mouth.

She pulled it out from a hidden pocket none of them had noticed in her pants.

It was actually the length of the sword's sheath, and went to her knee, with the handle and everything else hidden beneath the baggy shirt -she had thought this through, after all, since she A- didn't want to attract unneeded attention (IE a certain DC -Disciplinary Committee- Head), and B- it was easier to catch one by surprise if they didn't know all your tricks -lesson number one of self defense.

Something none of the Varia seemed to be very keen on (except Bel, but he was quick to brag so that didn't count either), which had really surprised her.

Though the surprised looks on their faces were rather worth it.

Squalo and Bel opened their mouths, but were shot down before they could speak.

"Don't ask," she told them, sighing, as she kneaded the bridge of her nose, "Can I go now? I want a bath before I go to sleep -my muscles are kind of sore..."

* * *

Mika sighed. Bliss, pure _bliss_, that was exactly what she was feeling at the moment, as she stood under the shower.

As she had passed by -on her way to her room- she had realized that there had been an explosion pretty close by, seeing as two thirds of a room, and a quarter of another right next to it were completely charred.

She blinked, a little surprised, but shook it off, deciding to ignore it -it was normal for there to be char marks on the walls back at the Castle, and since it was made out of sturdier stuff, she really wasn't surprised that the hotel wouldn't be able to fare quite so well.

After that, she had continued walking to her room. Only then realizing, with some annoyance, that she now had neighbors...

Xanxus was now using the suit next to hers, while Squalo had his across from hers...

It certainly explained the remains of the two rooms if Xanxus and Squalo had had another one of their 'tiffs' -especially if Xanxus was pissed enough to flame through a wall to hit Squalo. Who, she realized,_had_ been smelling a little funky.

Then again, he was around Xanxus so much, both smelled a little like brimstone and fire, let alone charcoal -actually, luckily for them all, the two men didn't smell like charcoal, hazardous and normal as it might be -it was still _hazardous_ and _dangerous_, after all.

After all, they couldn't be questioned every time a sprinkler went off on them, right...?

Speaking of sprinklers... She thought, turning the shower off. She had been in there long enough.

And she had a feeling she would have to wake up _extra_ early tomorrow...

Something she wasn't quite happy about, but had, in the end, deemed it necessary enough that she didn't fight it. Nor did she read or play around as she usually did before bed.

No, today, she fell right into the bed, and rolled under the covers, asleep within seconds -even with Xanxus and Squalo arguing (again) out in the hall...

* * *

**Chinese to English Translations**: (In case anyone was interested =D Yes, I know Chinese! *Gasp!* XD)

谢谢, 大姐! / XièXiè, DàJiě! : Thank you, big sister!

不客气! / Bù KèQì! : You're Welcome.

是的! 我会! / Shì de! Wǒ huì! : 'Yes!/Of course! I will!' or 'I definately will!'

我相信你 / Wǒ XiāngXìn Nǐ : I believe you. (Un! Means nothing, just a sound of agreement =D)

* * *

**A/N**: Bleh, around 3,000 Words {Now 3,759 Words exactly} not including the Translations (in case anyone needed them) =D And yes, I knows Chinese! LeGasp! *grins*

**Spanner**: Uh... yay?

**Tsuri-Born**: *squeals* YAY! OMAKE! (XP)

**Spanner**: *jumps* What the-! *didn't see her coming*

**Authoress**: *gasps -then chokes due to gasp-failure* ...! *coughs to clear throat* Ahem! (XD) He- I mean, Tsuri-kouhai! (XD)

When'd you get here! (XD)

**Tsuri-Born**: Three hours ago~ *grins*

**Authoress**: I knew that! (XD)

**Spanner**: (O.o) How-?

**Authoress**: -'d she get past security? *smirks, finishing Spanner's sentence*

**Spanner**: *nods mutely*

**Authoress**: (=D) Oh, that's simple~ Ne~ Watashi no kawaii imouto-kun~? (X3)

**Tsuri-Born**: *grins* Hai~ Watashi no sugoi no Ane-san~ *evil smirk* But, that's for me to know, and you to... not know! (XD)

**Spanner**: *confused beyond reason*

**Authoress**: (XD) Lol! She got ya, Span-chan~ *grins evilly* But, she's right, we can't tell ya~ Or others would be able to infiltrate our base too~ *grins*

**Spanner**: ...? But how-? Why...? *shakes head* Lollipop?

**Authoress**: YAY! Lolli's! (XD) Still got Coconut flavor?

**Spanner**: *riffles pockets* Uh... Yeah. *pulls out a few white pops* I can't remember if those were Coconut or Lycee so you'll have to guess though. *blinks*

**Tsuri-Born**: *giant puppy-eyes and whines like a puppy* Don't _I_ get one...? *pouts*

**Spanner**: ... *stares* ... Chibi... *continues to stare mutely*

**Authoress**: *takes pop and sucks it happily, then blinks* ... Uh-oh...

**Tsuri-Born**: *Tilts head slightly -puppy eyes still in effect* A-Aneki...? Spanner's scaring me~! *teary eyes*

**Authoress**: ... *frozen* (O.o) Uh... *trying to think of a solution*

**Spanner**: ...

*total silence except for slight whimpering*

**Authoress**: LOOK IT'S XS!

**Tsuri-Born**: Whe- Wait... I don't like XS-

**Me**: *legasp!* How could you-

**Tsuri-Born**: -as much as R2718!

**Authoress**: (O.o) What... the _fuck_...?(!)

**Spanner**: *more than confused now* Uh... Lollipop? *blinks*

**Tsuri-Born**: *eyes light up* gasp! YES! (XD) *glomps Spanner for lolli*

**Spanner**: *knocked over* -Oof!

**Authoress**: *gasps* Heo- I mean, Tsuri! *looks disapproving*

**Tsuri-Born**: B-But... But-! *tears up*

**Authoress**: Oh damn... *sighs* Tsuri, c'mon, now I- *winces*

**Tsuri-Born**: ~! *starts crying*

**Authoress**: *groans* Oh gawd... *sighs, and covers ears* Well, at least she let Spanner go.. *mutters*

**Spanner**: *deaf now* What was that? *yells*

**?**: *door slams* Shut up. You're being too noisy!

**Tsuri-Born**: *stops, only because surprised but tears up again* But I- You- I...! *sniffles*

**Authoress**: *groans* Ugh... Look what you did, Mammon! *sighs*

**Mammon**: *scoffs* Whatever, The only reason I'm still here is cuz it's probably not safe to go back yet, *grumbles* And I can't count my money cause you're being so loud... *grumbles and sighs*

I'm leaving... *floats out of base*

**Authoress**: (O.o) Wait, what-? *starts* But, Mammon-! *door slams*

... Well, that went horribly...

**Spanner**: What? *still deaf*

**Authoress**: ... *picks up board and starts writing*

**Board**: You're deaf, Spanner.

**Spanner**: Deaf...? *confused* Oh... so _that's_ why I can't hear anything... *mumbles*

**Board**: Can you fix it?

**Spanner**: Our hearing...? *thinks... then nods* Yeah, might take a little, but I should be able to get it fixed... I'll start now... *leaves*

**Tsuri-Born**: *getting ready to cry again* Uuu...

**Authoress**: *notices Tsuri and starts panicking* Oh crap, uh...

Oh, hey! Omake! Remember?

**Tsuri-Born**: O...ma...ke...? *eyes start shining*

**Authoress**: ... Crap... *groans/mumbles*

Uh, y-yeah...! See? Right here! Omake! *points down*

**Tsuri-Born**: *eyes sparkle* Omake? *squeals* OMAKEOMAKEOMAKEOMAKEOMAKE~! (XD) OMAKE- *continues chanting*

**Authoress**: .. *sighs* Well, Guess I better get on that, then... And for today's omake *ignoring hyper-active kouhai in background acting on sugar high (due to FRUIT of all things) with shiny eyes* ...

Well, I'll leave that for you to see... *sighs* Oh darnit, almost forgot... *mutters* TSURI! *snaps*

**Tsuri-Born**: *screeches to halt* Yes? *still has shiny sparkly eyes*

**Authoress**: Do the disclaimer and we'll get to the Omake, k? *smiles sweetly*

**Tsuri-Born**: Haaai~! (^w^)/

Onee-san (**Authoress**: Senpai, He-Tsuri, Onee-san would confuse them. **Tsuri**: Oh, right, well then, Senpai) doesn't own KHR! (^w^)

Akira Amano-san does~ *worships Amano statue*

**Authoress**: Uh... *sweats* Yeah, what she said. I don't own anyone but Mika-chan, and this idea, and possibly any other OCs that show up.

Ja! Heon- I mean, Tsuri! *calls* Let's end this and start teh Omake, already!

**Tsuri-Born**: Hai! Nee-san! *runs over*

**Authoress**: On the count of three...

One...

**Tsuri-Born**: Two...

**Both**: THREE!

**Authoress**: Ja!

**Both**: Matta ne!

**Haru**: *pops out of nowhere* See you again, desu! *waves*

**Authoress**: *twitches* DAMNIT HARU! You don't show up here! *growls and kicks Haru out*

**Haru**: Hahi! So me-aaaaannnn~! *flies off into the distance*

**Authoress**: *grumbles* How does she keep getting in anyways? *mumbles*

**Tsuri-Born**: *traumatized by the most annoying person in the series -in her opinion, not including Levi or Lambo*

... (O.o) *soul flies out of mouth*

**Authoress**: GACK! *shocked* No! You can't die! *chases after flying soul* TSURI~~~~! *finally gets used to calling Kouhai Tsuri*

* * *

**Omake**:

_Once upon a time... there was a simple girl, in a simple enough world, who was obsessed with an anime called KHR! (written by Akira Amano)..._

_She was a -seemingly- normal girl, with short(-ish) onyx hair that fell to her shoulders, and simple, chocolate colored eyes..._

"...Really?" blink. "But I-"

_Shush! I am the author! I decide what happens!_

"...Alright, fine..." sighs.

_Good! Now I can start the story again...! Ahem...!_

X-x-X-x-X-x-X-x-X-x-X-x-X-x-X-x-X-x-X-x-X-x-X-x-X

Once, there was a simple girl, living in her own simple little world. She loved anime and manga, and obsessed particularily over a series called Katekyoushi Hitman Reborn. Now, other than her little obsessions, Mikami "Kyouya" Murasaki was about as normal as one could get...

Well, as normal as insane got in today's world anyways.

(**Mika**: Hey! **Authoress**: Shut up! And get into your costume! Everyone else is ready already!** Mika**: What! *yelps*)

Of course, she was also a dreamer, and tended to day dream during her lessons...

_Mika appears in a traditional English garden wearing a lacy noblewoman's dress and sits under the shade of a tree-_

(**Mika**: What! But there were no anime/manga back then! And a _dress_? Really?(!) You know I hate dresses-! **A**: I said _shut up_! It doesn't have to make sense anyway! Now get back in place! *orders***Mika**: Tche, fine, whatever... *grumbles but obeys*)

-_reading a manga, while pretending to be studying._

But little did she know, one day, her dreaming would take her to an entirely different world altogether...

A world where sense made no sense, and insanity reigned -though a little common sense didn't hurt in dangerous situations...

(**Mika**: Wait, WHAT? What do you mean- **A**: *doesn't bother saying anything this time, instead, kicking her straight back to the set and conveniently into the hole she was supposed to trip into to start the story*)

And so it was, that she was pulled into that other world...

(**Mika**: WHAT! But You haven't even-! *is cut off once she falls into the hole...)

X-x-X-x-X-x-X-x-X-x-X-x-X-x-X-x-X-x-X-x-X-x-X-x-X

...**Mikami in Varia-Land!**

Once, there were four Great kingdoms in a world called Mafia(-Land), the first Kingdom was known for their kind hearted rulers, the Vongolan Kingdom -otherwise known as the Kingdom of Clams- the land of the Mystic Arcobaleno (which, really, wasn't a Kingdom, but for lack of a better term, and since the royal Famiglia were said to be Immortal, since they never seemed to age, though their 'Leader', the Sky Arcobaleno always seemed to change) -also known as the Kingdom of Gods- the Millefiore Kingdom -which, actually, used to be two small Kingdoms before they formed an alliance (Gesso Kingdom actually sorta coerced the Giglio Nero Kingdom to join 'forces', and thus the Millefiore Kingdom was born)- and last but most definitely not least, the Varian Kingdom.

Which actually, was also known as 'Varia-Land', since they weren't really a Kingdom. The leader of the Varia was said to be the Ninth Vongolan Ki-Leader's adopted son. And upon finding out that he could not take the throne for himself (because he did not have the Vongolan Blood, which caused him to be rejected, and some scrawny brunette peasant became next in line), he and some others created the Kingdom of Varia, so that he _could_ rule -though, unfortunately, the 'freedom' came with a price, of working with the Vongola when needed (since his 'father' was such a sentimental old fool).

And it was, quite unfortunately for the poor girl that was pulled into their world, where our story starts...

And where the once (somewhat) normal girl named Mikami Murasaki's life changed forever. But whether for better or worse, well, you'll just have to see...

X - x - X - x - X - x - X

"Ughn..." Mika awoke with a groan, finding herself (once again) lost in a forest she had no recollection of entering at all.

"I swear, I am going to _kill_ that woman..." (**A**: Hey! No Breaking the 4th wall! **Mika**: What! You're the one who broke it first! **A**: Did not! *argument continues until Squalo appears* **Squalo**: Voooiiiii! Boss says that if we don't get this over with soon, then he's gonna be pissed! **Mika**: Meep! *eyes wide* **A**: Psh! *rolls eyes* Oh please, he's not leaving till the end of this story! And if he tries... *starts smiling evilly and laughs maniacally* **S+M**: *shivers* She's so (fucking) creepy... **A**: ... *snrk* S-S + M... *cracks up* **S+M**: *back away slowly* What the fuck-?1 **A**: *stops laughing* Ahem! Now... BACK TO THE STORY! *rawrs* **S+M**: (O.o) Meep! *run back to their places in the story)

(**A**: Now... Let's try this again... *rewinds back to where Mika wakes up*)

"Ughn..." Mika woke with a groan, finding herself (once again) lost in a forest she had no recollection of entering at all.

"What the-!" she gasped, staring at the forest around her.

It was the weirdest forest she had ever seen! Well, if not the largest. (She had a feeling even five people trying to stretch their arms around one of those big ones wouldn't be enough to make a full circumference of the trunk...)

But not only that, but there were such odd creatures! Well, okay, not odd, really, though the fact that they were even _in_ the forest was the odd thing.

For one, she was pretty sure that Minks did not live in forests as green or leafy as this one was, since -from what she had learned- they lived in cold. Second, Sharks and Manta Rays most certainly did _NOT_live in a forest, let alone fly through the air like the ones she was seeing did...

Wait a minute... Sharks and... Manta... Rays...?

Oh crap... she thought, as one of said sharks seemed to spot her, and dove straight for her from somewhere in the upper reaches of the trees -quite high if the height of the trees were any indication...

No, wait, more importantly, she was about to be shark bait-!

And so, Mika did the only thing a (somewhat) sane adolescent teen would do...

She ran.

Well, actually, she screamed, _then_ ran...

Fortunately for her, the Shark kept ramming into the foliage and fauna around them as it chased after her, slowing it down as it chased it.

_Un_fortunately for her, this also meant that it was at _least_ several times larger than her, considering the size of the destruction it was carving into the forest.

"-!" Mika screamed as she ran as fast as her legs could carry her, fervertly wishing that she had gone on with her self defense lessons instead of giving into her mother and elder sister after all. Then, at least she would have a better chance of surviving in whatever insane place this was...

"VOOOOOIIIII! SHUT THE HELL UP, BITCH! BOSS'LL GET PISSED IF YOU KEEP BEING SO LOUD!" yelled a familiar looking silver haired man, as she ran past him.

She didn't even bother to stop (running and screaming that is).

"VOOOIIIII! DON'T IGNORE ME, BITCH!(!)!" he yelled, not even looking as he called after her, and sliced through the impending shark before he caught her.

"Gya-kugh-!" She choked a bit as he caught her by the back of her collar, and pulled her back, forcing her to face the scowling 'shark'.

"Now, What the Fuck are you doing here, _bitch_?" he asked, eyes narrowed, as he spoke in a low growl (or as soft as Squalo could, which was, quite really, the equivilent of a person talking).

"I-I don't know! I just fell through the hole... And... I was almost eaten by a shark!" she exclaimed, almost hysterically, as she prayed to the gods that she would not be killed where she stood...

"Tche! Useless!" he growled, "Whatever," he grumbled, "We'll just see what Xanxus wants to do with you..." his eyes narrowed as he stared at her, trying to decide whether it would be worth bothering Xanxus for to get her 'official' punishment...

"Wh-What?" Her eyes widened at the mention of Xanxus -as much as he loved the Varia characters, she knew that they were absolutely _ruthless_. "Xanxus-? Y-You can't do this to me, Squalo!" at this point she started to struggle. "Let... go...!" she struggled as much as she could, but with the old-fashioned dress and petticoats on, she couldn't really do much, though the dress _was_ ripped at the hemm, allowing her easier leg movement, even if not by much.

The silver haired swordsman's eyes narrowed at the girl, "VOOOOIIII! HOW THE FUCK DO YOU KNOW THAT, BITCH?(!)" he exclaimed, keeping hold of her despite her (fierce) struggles.

Finally, he got tired of this, and, despite his slim figure (he _was_ rather strong, after all, otherwise he wouldn't be _in_ the Varia), easily shook her (one handed, of course, the other was fake), and silenced the poor girl.

She paled, and immediately shut up, staringa t Squalo with wide eyes.

He growled, "Fuck this!" he scowled, pulling up his other synthetic hand, and checking the time on the watch, "I'm going to be late!" he scowled, muttering quite a few obscenities before seeming to remember her, "And _YOU! _YOU'RE COMING TOO!" he glared at the girl once more, before proceeding to drag her along as he started running.

"Gah-!" Poor Mika could only try to catch up, impeded as she was by her clothes, only to trip constantly, as her stocking tore against the rough ground.

Eventually, Squalo growled, sighing, and stopped, "You know what? Forget it! You can go by yourself!" he snapped, letting go of the girl, before running off, not quite thinking past the whole 'he was going to be late, and fucking shit! Xanxus was going to be so pissed if he was late again!' to think that any_sane_ person would not follow, and would, quite to the contrary, run in the _opposite_ direction to get as far as they could...

Which, as it so happened, was _exactly_ what poor Mika did...

X - x - X - x - X - x - X - x - X

Eventually, she stopped, realizing that, once again, she was completely and utterly lost.

But just as she was about to give up hope, she heard something... music...? She blinked, perhaps it was some sort of settlement? Or at least there might be people! She thought, hope renewing itself as she ran towards the sound, tired as her legs were getting... (Her stocking and shoes were filthy as well, not to mention the ends of her ripped skirt/dress...)

"...'cuz I'm the Prince, and as a Prince, at noon I'll have my tea~ Ushishishi~"

As she got closer, she slowed down, paying a bit more attention to the lyrics, and what was being said.

"...Please stop singing, Fake-Prince -senpai... Your horrible voice is killing my ears..." a rather monotone and dull voice interrupted, before the speaker sighed, "...Ow... Please stop stabbing me, Senpai..."

"No," said the 'Prince' before he laughed, and started singing again, just to spite the other speaker.

"Ushishishi~" By now, she had gotten close enough to see what was going on, and she could hear the slight mechanical breathing of the Gola Mosca a little off to the side.

It was Bel(phegor) and Fran! She recognized the two immediately, but dared not come out yet, seeing as Bel was a homicidal... well, he was just plain homicidal... (No, wait, he was a _prince_, too.)

"..." Fran sighed, and decided that a subject change was needed, as Bel -once again- stabbed Fran's frog hat. "Levi's late," he monotoned rather than using one of his usual snarky replies (which, actually, were usually the cause of the knives currently sticking out of his head).

"Ushishishi..." Bel stopped laughing, and frowned, "You're right, the _peasant_ is late with my milk!" he scowled, twirling one of his knives rapidly in his free hand, as the other one supported his head on the not quite rectangular, not quite round, table they were at.

The Gola Mosca continued to stay still, holding a tray with what looked like an English tea set, complete with desserts ranging from simple sweets, to entire miniature cakes and pies...

Almost immediately, Mika felt her stomach's message -she had not eaten since breakfast, and of course, her midsection would choose _now_ of all times to complain.

Luckily for her, just then, a figure crashed through, and dropped (actually, he slammed) the 'groceries' on the table.

It was Levi. (**A**: Ugh, I _hate_ that guy! Even more than I dislike Haru! *grumbles*) His entrance managed to hide her stomach's complaint, but she would have to find something to sustain her -and_soon_!

"Here's your damn milk," Levi scowled, taking the milk out of what looked like a paper convenience store bag and slamming it down onto the table in front of the Prince.

"Ushishishi~ Finally!" said Bel, not thankful in the least, as he ordered Fran to pour the milk into the little milk container especially used for holding the milk during teas.

"...No," he monotoned simple, "I don't want to," he said, and seemed to attempt a pout, though with his usual apathetic it just seemed more rebellious than cute.

Bel frowned, "_Oh?_" almost immediately, the corners of his mouth turned up into a rather sadistic smile.

The rest of the clearing's occupants seemed to freeze, as the Ripping Prince's smile turned into a grin, then an almost-maniacal laugh.

"..." The forest seemed to get several degrees lower in that moment.

And at that moment, Mika was quite ready to believe that Bel was even scarier than Xanxus on a bad day...

oOoOoOoOoOo

In a stone castle (Varia Castle) that lay deep in the Varia Forest, a certain ruler (**A**: *cough* _Dictator_*cough*) sneezed and scowled, just as a certain silver haired man barged into the throne room.

"VOOOOOOOIIIIIIIIIIII!"

Needless to say, there was a rather larger-than-usual explosion deep within the forest that day...

oOoOoOoOoOo

"..." The occupants of the clearing stared at each other blankly (with the exception of GM since he doesn't stare).

"Ushishishi~ And... _who_ are you again...?"

This comment from a certain prince recieved a collective round of groans. Mika had been repeating herself for over an hour now, and she was starting to think that maybe Bel was doing this on purpose -just to get her riled.

Instead, she just sighed, as a snort came from a certain green-haired frog-hat wearing teen -the closest Fran had gotten to laughter so far (or ever, if the series was to be believed).

Fran knew the teenage Prince (from another, smaller Kingdom, of course -not the Four Great Ones, and so, not worth mentioning), also known as the Mad Hatter (thought, really, he thought that his other nickname was more appropriate -I mean, he didn't even _wear_ a hat! It was a tiara! -thought, Bel might differ on that... (**Bel**: *scowls* It's a _crown_! **A**: Hey! No breaking the th-no wait... it was... uh... oh, right. Fourth wall! *glares* **Bel**: *scoffs* Whatever... *grumbles and goes back*)).

Well, there was a reason he was Madder than a certain Arcobaleno Hatter (Reborn) -even if he was a Prince.

Thus, the nickname of the Varia's own 'Mad Hatter', for not only was he insane (not that any of them_weren't_ -well, with the exception of GM since it was a machine...), but he was the only one of them to wear anything close to a hat, and his insanity was usually fueled by a whim -whims that were usually fueled by his 'Princely-hood'...

Agh, thinking about these sort of things always gave him such a headache...

"...Bel-senpai...?" Fran twitched, when he felt the familiar feel of cold iron going through him.

"Ushishishi~ Yes, ungrateful froggy-kouhai...?" he grinned, wondering whether he would react to his jibes and (in his mind) 'taunts' in any way.

"...Please stop stabbing me," he frowned -or...as much as he could without changing his expression more than just marginally.

"...Heehee-!" Mika couldn't help but laugh at the situation, though...

Maybe it wasn't such a good idea, considering that everyone there was staring at her...

Again.

"Heh...heh...?" She giggled rather nervously, "Uhm... has anyone seen a girly-looking male with long silver hair run by here...?" she asked, trying to get their attention off her.

"Eh?" "Squalo?" "The Sharkie~? ...shishi~"

Fran blinked, "Oh. Yeah, he ran towar-Ow!" he winced slightly as several knives embedded themselves in his body.

"No," Bel told her blatantly, all the while smiling content/innocent -ly.

Fran Frowned, "...Bel-Senpai..."

"Ushishishi~ Yes~? Uncute Frog-Kouhai?" Bel Grinned.

"Please stop stabbing me..." He twitched. _Really?_

"Hmn..." He seemed to think about it for half a second before 'making up' his mind, "N. O. No~" He teased, grinning even more.

"..." Mika had a feeling she would be stuck there for a while if this went on...

Wait... where'd Levi disappear off to...? She thought suspiciously, looking around to realize that the pierced male was no-where to be seen.

Little did she know, Bel had 'taken care' of him before proceeding to taking care of of the Frog-hat wearing boy who had been trying to be Polite, at the very least...

Obviously that wasn't going well, though. But, Bel's judgement (for once) had been correct in taking Levi out first -the fool would've blurted everything out (as he had been about to before his convenient little, eh... 'nap'), and _then_ where would he have been?

Back to the Frog-hat for a companion for one, and really, he was no fun -never any reactions...

Well, whatever, he was sure he'd have some fun with this one at least, before she 'perspired'...

**To Be Continued...**

* * *

**Edit(2/24/11'):** Whoot! Managed to finish revising both chapters today~ =D Over at LAST!

Can't wait to get started on the next chapter of Woruba~~ :hearts:

Oh, yes, this chapter spans the length of 3,759 words. Short, I know, but I think I more than made up for it with that doozy of an Omake! And that's not even all of it!

I'd say it's about a Fourth of it. I'm thinking of continuing it whenever I have the time, but I think I may just use this as a 'preview' of the thingie, and just post the 'Omake' as a seperate story on Fanfiction later -Hell knows this Omake is long enough for a one-shot!

Of course, there will be several -four, in fact~ As you've all probably guessed~ =P Comments/Reviews would be much appreciated -especially what you think of the omake and my plans or it! =3

And of course, Flames will be used to power Verde's machine, as always~~

**Verde**: And to be used to help find a way to break the Arcobaleno curse, of course. Kuku... *pushes glasses up*

**Authoress**: Of course! So, if you wanna see Reborn and the other Arcobaleno in adult form in the fanfiction sooner, please review!

**Verde**: And leave flames, don't forget~ *smirk*

**Authoress**: Hai~ Verde-sama~ :hearts:


	11. PREVIEW! 10 The First Day's Always

NOTE!:: This is a PREVIEW. Not the Full Chapter! I lost 2/3 of what I had when I typed this up and never did manage to recover it, so when it's re-written it will be re-written entirely when I finally post stuff anyways... So here you go. Part of what would have happened when I finally got out of Hiatus... Eventually... *sigh* Anyways, have this, and please be patient until I figure things out! K, Thanks, Bye!

- Murasaki Argenteria (04.25.3013)

* * *

**Stuck In The KHR! World** Chapter 10 Preview:

10. The First Day's Always The Hardest! Mika's Mistake?

* * *

The Next Morning, Mika woke to an oddly -and suspiciously- quiet air.

"..." She blinked her eyes sleepily, covering a yawn, as she slipped out of bed -really, it was rather odd. One would have expected Xanxus and Squalo up and being loud -or _someone _yelling- but this quiet...

Even _if_ it was early in the morning... it was, really, rather unsettling (not to mention _disturbing _considering who it was she was around nowadays) -but she soon found out why, when she reached the hall.

"Ara~? Mika-chan~~ You're already up~? My, that's too bad~! And here I wanted to wake you myself~" Luss pouted.

"Er... Luss...san...?" she twitched a bit at the 'decor' of the room.

"Hai~~ Mika-chan~?" He beamed in that bright, motherly as he was wont to.

"Erhm..." She had to blink for a moment to clear her vision of the 'dazzling' smile before she could continue on. "_Why_ is the room filled to the brim with party-decorations and... so much food...?"

Well, the food was kind of understandable, seeing as the Varia ate -a _lot_- but... _this _much food...? _Really_?

"Ah~ Well~ I thought... it'd be nice if..." Lussuria stalled a bit, twiddling his fingers almost nervously (or she would have thought if she didn't know the effeminate man so well -and if he weren't slightly pink from what seemed to be an almost embarrassed looking blush), "Well... if we had a celebration!" he finally blurted out, getting to the point. "Since this is your first day of school (well, with _us_, at least)...!" Luss started to sniff, very much like the virtuous 'mama' that he claimed to be...

Well, privately, anyways.

"Muu... let's just get it over with," Mammon covered a yawn, floating in rather sleepily, as Bel followed behind. He normally didn't get up at this ungodly hour -but hey, free food. As for Bel, he wouldn't miss the 'festivities' for the world -after all, it was a _party_, and _everyone_ knew that the Prince liked a good party~ (Well, presuming it was 'Prince-worthy' of course...)

"Ushishishi~ A feast fit for a prince~~" he grinned, practically ignoring the 'shocked'-looking Mika as he walked past.

Though, she wasn't really_ shocked _it was more...

Well, she just couldn't believe that Luss would do this _just_ for her 'first day of school' here with them... she thought, chuckling a bit nervously as she sweat.

"Hmph, trash," Xanxus muttered, covered a yawn as a large scarred hand rested on her head for a few moments, "Well? What are you waiting for...!" he 'grouched', glaring (and rather mildly, considering this was _Xanxus_ being talked about) at Mika as she stood there.

"Eh?"

"_VOOOIIIII!_ WHAT THE HELL ARE YOU STANDING AROUND FOR? ! WE'RE ALL _STARVING_ HERE!" exclaimed Squalo, coming (or rather, _barging_) in from another door, waving his prosthetic sword hand at Mika, as he brought in what was and looked to be -apparently- the last 'dish' for the so-called 'feast'.

"Eh..." she sweat slightly (really, she would've laughed if he didn't look _quite_ so... well,_ threatening_ at that moment) -apparently Luss had (somehow) managed to get Squalo into a baby-blue apron, though it looked a little worse for wear...

She could bet -right now- that there had at been a scuffle at the very least, though little did she know, they had actually been preparing half the night into morning after she had gone to sleep for this 'silly' celebration.

She _did _have another hour or so before she was supposed to leave for 'school', but...

"Aha... I-I guess you're right..." she said, chuckling nervously, as she thought:_ Good thing I woke up so early_...


End file.
